By Sen. (Prof.) O. A Osunbor
With campaigns on-going for various elective positions in the 2023 general elections it is imperative at this time to reflect on the type of person Nigeria needs to elect to the office of President. What really are the expectations of Nigeria?
Without a doubt, Nigerians want to have a country that works; that can provide the basic everyday needs of her citizens; whose leadership is imaginative, creative and can transform Nigeria from being perpetually “a country with great potentials” to one where those potentials become a reality with actual gains and positive results in all spheres of life. We need a President under whose watch and inspiring leadership we can change the narrative about Nigeria being a potentially great country; a President that will ignite the engines of growth which will result in actual gains and true greatness. We need a builder who will not only position Nigeria on a new trajectory towards the realisation of her full potentials but will set the tone for the sub-national units to emulate. In 2023 and beyond the narrative must change in a remarkably different way by electing a President who can build the Nigeria of our dreams. The only way to decide who best meets these requirements amongst the Presidential candidates is to examine the track records of each of them. This determination can be best made not through blind emotions, anger, hatred, envy, insults or protest but by a calm, sober and dispassionate assessment of the antecedents and track records of the candidates who seek to be our President.
We have reached a defining moment for Nigeria when we must seize the opportunity to lift our country out of the throes of backwardness so that it can join the league of developed nations. Many formerly under-developed countries like ours have since left us far behind in the development index. We have gone past the time of rhetoric and bare campaign promises (and politicians the world over are notorious for promises not kept) but must assess each candidate by what he had done before in public office as a pointer to what he is likely to be able to do in the higher office of President. Manifestos and debates have their place but much more important is the ability to fulfil campaign promises supported by past records.
The President that Nigeria needs in 2023 and beyond is one that can build our country to the standard we all desire and expect it to be as demonstrated, not by mere rhetoric but by evidence that all can see. The candidate that best meets this description is, without a doubt, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu the APC Presidential candidate. The evidence spans various spheres of what it takes to build a nation to greatness. With Tinubu, Nigeria will break away from backwardness and be positioned irreversibly on the path of development and greatness. He proved this in Lagos when he assumed the office of Governor in 1999 by laying a foundation which his successors have continued to build upon in diverse spheres to the admiration of all fair-minded persons. A few illustrations will suffice.
Sen. (Prof.) Oserheimen A. Osunbor, Ph.D, D.Litt, KSC, FCArb, FNIALS, Rhodes Scholar.
