The presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement, APM, Seyi Makinde, says Nigeria needs an energetic leader capable of confronting its challenges.
Speaking at a campaign event in Akure, the Ondo State capital, Makinde also criticised President Bola Tinubu’s administration over budget implementation and defended his decision to contest the presidency.
Makinde said the demands of the presidency required physical stamina and the capacity to respond to Nigeria’s challenges.
He challenged other presidential candidates to demonstrate their readiness for the responsibilities of the office.
The Oyo State governor also defended his decision to contest despite the incumbent President coming from the South-West.
He cited the 1999 presidential election, when Olusegun Obasanjo and Olu Falae contested against each other, arguing that the region could offer Nigerians more than one candidate without undermining national unity.
Makinde questioned the Federal Government’s budgetary processes, asking which budget it was currently implementing.
He contrasted this with his administration’s record in Oyo State, saying budget performance had risen from between twenty-eight and thirty per cent before he assumed office to more than seventy per cent.
He said his administration had maintained a January-to-December budget cycle for more than seven years, with budgets presented to and passed by the state House of Assembly before the start of each financial year.
Makinde urged Nigerians, particularly voters in the South-West, to support his proposed “Reset Nigeria” agenda.
He said his aim was to build an economy that served all Nigerians rather than a privileged few.
The governor also rejected what he described as politics of entitlement and nepotism, saying national development should take precedence over regional and political interests.
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Editor: Ada Ononye
