The presidential candidate of the National Rescue Movement (NRM), Esther Okereke, has urged Nigerians to offer a girl an opportunity to guide the nation, arguing that years of male-dominated management have failed to ship the specified outcomes.
Mrs Okereke mentioned her candidacy shouldn’t be judged merely on gender, however on what she described as her “blueprint, a plan and a framework” for governing Nigeria.
She made the remarks on Wednesday throughout an look on Sunrise Daily, a Channels Television programme, whereas discussing her marketing campaign forward of the 2027 presidential election.
Mrs Okereke mentioned she had encountered individuals who questioned whether or not a girl could lead on Nigeria.
She mentioned she responded by questioning why Nigerians ought to proceed with male management.
“Do you think a man who has failed for over 20 years should continue? If you don’t think so, then give this woman a chance,” she mentioned.
Nigeria has by no means elected a girl as president. The 2027 election will once more be contested predominantly by males, with solely two girls among the many 18 presidential candidates cleared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Mrs Okereke represents the NRM, whereas Ada Okwori is the National Democratic Party’s presidential candidate.
The two girls are in search of the presidency towards candidates together with President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress and former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress.
“By the way, I’m not here for gender politics. I’m here with accountability. I’m here with a blueprint, a plan, a framework to rescue,” she mentioned.
Energy first
Mrs Okereke recognized electrical energy as one of many first areas she would deal with if elected, arguing that unreliable energy provide undermines companies, expertise adoption and financial exercise.
She mentioned small and medium-sized companies usually lose clients due to energy failures and the price of counting on mills and different alternate options.
She mentioned dependable electrical energy can be mandatory for the nation to profit totally from expertise and good monitoring methods.
Tackling insecurity
The NRM candidate additionally recognized insecurity as one other speedy precedence, saying it discourages Nigerians residing overseas from returning to spend money on the nation.
“I have lots of friends that want to come back home to invest, not as charity, but as partners, for us to build Nigeria,” she mentioned.
“But when you tackle the insecurity, you would have lots of people coming home, you know, peacefully.”
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Mrs Okereke additionally criticised the observe of repairing roads shortly earlier than political leaders go to, arguing that infrastructure needs to be maintained as a part of regular governance reasonably than to impress visiting officers.
“If you have decided to go into public office, just have it at the back of your mind that you’re a servant. You’re here to serve the people, and that’s how it should be,” she mentioned.
Grassroots partnership
Mrs Okereke mentioned her marketing campaign is constructed on a grassroots construction and argued that residents needs to be handled as companions in governance, not merely voters.
“You don’t just need the grassroots for votes. You need them for partnership,” she mentioned.
“After the election, you need to answer questions from them. You need to give them updates.”
She mentioned her proposed governance framework would prioritise areas together with housing and healthcare, notably healthcare providers for folks on the grassroots.
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