The Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar has said that the only way he would stop the menace of Boko Haram and other form of insurgents will be to provide jobs for the youths and other Nigerians.
Speaking at an interactive session with the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) yesterday, Monday in Abuja, Atiku explained that once the jobless youths who are idling away are given good jobs to do, the issue of insecurity will be taken care of.
According to him, instead of the present administration to provide three million jobs yearly as it promised, a total of 11 million jobs have been lost since President Muhammadu Buhari came into office in 2015.
He listed the retooling of the nation’s armed forces for better performance among other strategies that have been penciled down as means of improving the effective security network of the nation.
On power supply, Atiku said, he would adopt the “captive power strategy” where specific power stations would provide power supply for specific areas adding that the strategy would ensure availability of power supply across the country within his first two years in office. He said that a study has revealed that the adoption of captive power stations will yield greater results than reliance on gas to generate power. He also said that there were companies willing to provide power at affordable rate using the captive power strategy.
On how to revive the economy, he said that he would create the right environment that would attract foreign and local investors who ran away from the country due to harsh economic and investment climate.
Atiku observed that the private sector and not government should be the highest employer of labour and the main engine of economic growth.
He noted that Nigeria slipped into recession because of capital flight and attendant closure of companies in the country following government’s pronouncements which sent the wrong signals to investors.
He said that the clampdown on domiciliary accounts forced investors to massively withdraw, close accounts and move their funds elsewhere, adding that the impact of the capital flight was the closure of companies and loss of jobs.
On the inclusion of women and youths in governance, he said that 40 per cent of his cabinet would be made of youths, 35 per cent for women while the remaining 25 percent would be filled by older Nigerians, adding that he plans to hand over to a younger generation.
Speaking on nepotism, Atiku said “by my nature I am not like that” assuring that he would run an all-inclusive government devoid of any kind of cabal.
Speaking on how to reduce Nigeria’s high maternal mortality rate, Atiku said that his administration would promote healthcare delivery system that is comprehensive, efficient and can deliver effective and qualitative services to women. He added that his policy document which was launched in November 2018 details in full what was in store for women.
