GOV AYO FAYOSE'S FULL SPEECH AT HIS PRESIDENTIAL DECLARATION
GOV AYO FAYOSE'S FULL SPEECH AT HIS PRESIDENTIAL DECLARATION
Full text of the address delivered by
His Excellency, Dr. Peter Ayodele Fayose, Governor of Ekiti State, on the
occasion of his official declaration to contest the 2019 Presidential Election
under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)
I welcome you all to this historic
event, which is landmark in the political landscape of our country, Nigeria.
My inviting you today, distinguished
leaders of our party, is to inform you formally that I will be seeking the
ticket of our great party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to contest the
2019 presidential election. This is without prejudice to our party’s position.
However, I am a supporter of
competence and capacity, especially now that this country needs young and able
leaders that can take our country out of this present state of hopelessness.
Most importantly, despite that the
party has zoned the presidency to the North, it may interest you that no one
has come out in this manner to show interest and our party should not wait or
beg anyone to fly its flag. Do we now say that if no one comes out from the
North, the party won’t have a candidate?
Going down memory lane, in 1999 and
2003, despite that our party zoned the presidency to the South, the likes of
Alhaji Abubakar Rimi of blessed memory and Chief Banabas Gemade contested the
ticket.
Also in 2007, some party members from
the South did not only declare their intention to contest, they also showed
interest and obtained nomination Forms. Those from the South were; Chief Victor
Attah, Dr. Peter Odili, Dr. Sam Egwu, Dr. Donald Duke, Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani,
Owelle Rochas Okorocha among others.
This, in itself, assisted in
deepening democracy.
Our party must not lose sight that
Nigerians at this period are desirous of a President with demonstrated capacity
to change their fortunes. Furthermore, we must be mindful of the fact that our
party needs a candidate like me, with a penchant for defeating incumbents.
Twice, I defeated incumbents to
become the Governor of Ekiti State and I am confident that with your support as
my party leaders and supporters, I will defeat the incumbent President,
Muhammadu Buhari, in a free and fair election.
Let me state that in Ekiti, God has
used me twice for our party to regain power from the opposition and I believe
same feat will be repeated at the national level.
I do not stand before Nigerians today
to present myself as one with the answers to all our national questions.
Rather, I present myself as one with the required knowledge, understanding,
competence and, above all, the political will to coordinate the human and
material resources that we have in abundance to achieve national greatness.
Having served successfully as
governor twice in a state with very meagre resources, I have by this garnered
enough experience over time to prepare me well enough for the task of leading
our country.
By the grace of God, I am the
longest-serving governor in Nigeria today, having served under three Presidents
– Obasanjo, Jonathan, and now Buhari.
Therefore, I can say expressly that I
am well equipped in terms of knowledge, experience as well as physical and
mental capacities to hit the ground running as soon as I assume office as
President of Nigeria in 2019.
Today, our country is faced with
myriad of problems. Our economy that was the fastest-growing in Africa when our
party was in power has gone comatose, with the present managers who are
completely clueless.
Scarcity of food last experienced
when President Buhari was Military Head of State between 1983 and 1985 has
returned to the country, with Nigerians going to bed daily on empty stomach.
Regrettably, a bag of rice that was
N7, 000 when PDP was in government is now N17, 000!
Allocation from the Federation
Account to the three tiers of government has declined to such a level that most
States can no longer carry out the basic obligation of paying workers’ salary.
Under the present government, our
economy recorded its second worst investment inflow in 10 years. Exchange Rate
that was N197/dollar in 2015 is now over N360/dollar.
In the area of security, which they
leveraged on to come to power, despite claims by the government that Boko Haram
was technically defeated; Nigerians are being killed by the insurgents while
villages are being attacked in the North-East. Also, herdsmen are killing
Nigerians and destroying farmlands with reckless abandon while kidnapping is
now on the rise.
Most worrisome is the fact that our
country is now more divided than ever before, with the unity of the country
being threatened due to nepotism, religious bigotry and favouritism of the
present government.
Unemployment has risen to an alarming
level. Instead of creating three million jobs per year as promised, millions of
jobs are being lost daily, with many companies folding up. This government has
successfully wiped off the middle-class.
Like they lied to win election, the
APC government of President Buhari has been deceitful for over two years and an
end must come to this deceptive government by 2019.
My party leaders, standing before you
is Peter (The Rock) Ayodele Fayose, the man already destined by God to take
Nigeria out of the present political and economic stagnations.
You are all witnesses to my
commitment to this party in this difficult period, where I have demonstrated
uncommon courage that makes me stand out as capable of leading our country at
this time.
Our economy will be revived and
returned to the path of progress that it was before we had the misfortune of
having these clueless people in power. We will ensure diversification of the
economy through agriculture, adequate supply of power and massive
industrialization, thereby creating employment for our youths. We can do it, and
we will do it.
With me as your President, you can be
rest assured of a government that will be responsive to your needs. You are
guaranteed a federal government that will relate with all Nigerians not on the
basis of ethnicity, religion, political affiliations and the percentage of
votes but on equity and justice as citizens of one nation, one people, and one
destiny.
In Ekiti State where I am presently
the governor, our success story in education is there for all to see. Ekiti
State was number 29th in 2014 NECO examinations but within two years, we were
able to move the State to number one in 2016 and again in 2017.
Also in the West African Senior
School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), Ekiti State’s performance, which was
25 percent in 2014, moved to 74.86 percent in 2017.
We were able to revive this sector
because we placed our teachers in the driver-seat of our policies. We will do
the same at the national level because we are mindful of the fact that
education is the bedrock of the development of any nation.
As a governor, I encouraged my
children to attend schools here in Nigeria and I have never travelled abroad
for Medicare. This, I hope to sustain as president of Nigeria by making sure
that our schools and health facilities are of international standard.
Our justice system will be such that
judges will not be molested and the common people of this country will see our
courts as truly their last hope while our security system will make all
Nigerians feel safe living in their own country.
Our fight against corruption will not
be selective but total.
My party leaders, I present myself to
you as the needed vehicle for our party to move back to the presidency. I am
doing so because I am confident that with God and all of you behind me, we can
do it, and we will do it.
Thanks and God bless.
