History will be made on the 29th May, 2022 as Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State is set to be elected as the next Presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
The former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory in last few months has left no doubt in the minds of the delegates as to his capacity to lift the country out of the plethora of problems crated by the incompetent administration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) under the watch of President Muhammadu Buhari to a flourishing country where all shades of opinion with be considered, all tribes recognised and anyone with knowledge on how the country can reinvent itself given an opportunity to do so irrespective of cultural and religious affiliation.
Gov. Mohammed is a man that dares all odds. In 2019, he dethroned a sitting APC Governor in Bauchi state a feat that has been achieve by a few.
As Governor of Bauchi state, Mohammed has provided sterling leadership, and presented himself as a leader who has been tested, and ready for opportunities in higher level. His achievements are very glaring in infrastructure, agriculture, administration, healthcare, housing and many others.
To show his energy, belief and capacity to be the nation’s next President, Gov
Mohammed has to roll his sleeves and commit to what he profess. His campaign team could be described as a microcosm of Nigeria, comprising of professionals and zealous personalities from different parts of the country. The team has traversed the entire length and breath of the country and had quality interactions with delegates from the state who expressed satisfaction with the level of knowledge and intimidating credential the aspirant is bringing to the table. He has covered the whole of South South, Soith West, South East, North Central. He also met with delegates from the FCT, Kaduna, Kebbi, Katsina and Kano in the North West as well as Taraba in the North Eeast. He will finish the remaining North West and North East states by Tuesday.
The aspirant also met with different organs and stake holders in the party including; The Board of Trustees (BoT), National Working Committee (NWC), Senate and House of Representatives Caucuses, Forum of Former PDP Ministers, Forum of Former National Assembly Members, Forum of State Assembly Principle Officers to mention but a few. His vision for the country and campaign manifesto called NIGERIA FIRST GOVERNANCE VISION is distributed at each meeting to give the deligates first hand information on his commitments. His disposition to all tribes and religion, coupled with his gift of eloquence in marshalling his implementation strategy is contagious and too articulate to ignore.
Gov. Mohammed has been described by many as the unifier, a bridge between the North and the South, the old and the young. His acceptance is overwhelming. The delegates are in agreement that he is the person needed at this time for stabilization of the country.
In Anambra, Mohammed met with the delegates of the party at Hollywood events centre, along the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway, Awka. Before what one can describe as his triumphant entry into the arena, delegates who converged to welcome him had mixed feelings about who they have converged to welcome. To the delegates, Mohammed was just one of those Northern politicians, and most importantly a Muslim, who is not different from all the others.
A member of the party from Anambra who was also on ground to welcome Senator Mohammed, Hon Afam Eze said, “I have never met him, I have never also watched him speak before. I only know him as the governor of Bauchi State. The most I know of him was when he was the Minister of Federal Capital Territory. Who knows, he may not even be different from all the other northern politicians who have been the bane of this country.”
The cheers among the delegates when he mentioned that the Southeast and Northeast had the most legitimate claim to the presidency was very visible. He said that both zones having not tested power were the most eligible for the position and went ahead to describe the Igbo nation as critical in the Nigerian project while recommending that their entrepreneurial ingenuity and apprenticeship should be emulated by other parts of the country as a model for addressing poverty and unemployment in the country.
He said, “I am presenting myself for election and I seek your support but if I don’t win, I will support the eventual candidate of PDP because we have to rescue Nigeria.” If delegates in the respective states visited by the governor had any more doubt in them previously, the above words cleared all of them, leaving the aspirant before them as a rare politician, a dispassionate one, whose style of politics is away from the usual win-by-all-cost politicians.
The governor also thrilled delegates in Enugu and Ebonyi. He told them that he would run an inclusive government if given the party’s mandate and wins the 2023 presidential election. While addressing hundreds of party delegates from Ebonyi and Enugu, he called on the delegates to join him in retrieving, rescuing and renovating the country with knowledge-based solutions.
If everything the aspirant said was fascinating, perhaps the delegates were more fascinated when they learnt that under Senator Bala Mohammed as governor of Bauchi State, many Nigerians from all the geo political zones in the country, including Igbo indigenes were among his advisers and key government officials. His campaign organisation too has as Acting DG, Prof. Udenta O. Udenta from Enugu State and other Directors and members cutting across tribes and tongues of Nigeria.
Speaking with journalists after the event, a member of the party, Hon Gozie Mbamalu said: “I have not listened to all the presidential aspirants of the party, so, if you are asking me to rate Senator Bala Mohammed, I may not be able to do so accurately. But I want to tell you that I’m very happy with his speech today, You know, some of us from the south, there is a way we look at northern politicians, but I must tell you the truth, he came off as a very dispassionate politician, and who has the genuine interest of this country at heart. He is a politician you cannot afford not to like, especially if you like this country to move forward. At least, he showed through his speeches and body language that he earnestly wants this country to grow.”
Further isclosing the thrust of his administration to the Forum of Former PDP Ministers the aspitanst said,
“I am going to have a knowledge driven administration to do away with exclusion, with division and sectionalism. We must have the best lines of ourselves where we are, where we want to go and how. We have to have a plan.
“But we are going to have a knowledge driven presidency. We are not going to be borrowing recklessly. We have done it in the FCT and I’m doing it in Bauchi, leveraging on small resources and doing much, having correct procurement process and managing scarcity was sagacity. The audacity of knowledge of using the best, not looking at China as if it is a freefall for resources, the resources are here in Nigeria, where my vision or our vision can do it. All these monies we are taking is going into private pockets. Our solid minerals have not been exploited, even our oil resources that we are dependent on is being plondered, everybody knows that and we have to find a solution.
“We will do justice and equity in this country. We will open up and become accessible. We will access our resources in this country very well. We have to dippen M and E in a manner that we will know what is going everywhere in the MDAs, we will not just sit in the Oval Office and be wearing beautiful shoes and good caps, we will have to come out and supervise”.
The governor after the tour was delighted with the result he achieved. He said: “We are delighted by the enthusiasm and cooperation expressed by the delegates of FCT, Enugu, Anambra and Ebonyi,” he said. It’s incredible how the delegates effortlessly connect with my powerful message of hope and national recovery with each region and group contributing their quota to that effort. My presidential campaign is an unstoppable movement with no doubt about it.”
If given the party’s mandate, Bala said he will help in tackling the myriads of problems facing the country. “I am a visionary leader who is fully prepared for national sacrifice, who is tried and trusted and whose compelling life journey and exposure as a journalist, civil servant, senator, minister and governor have equipped me with the skills set to tackle the myriad of frightening problems this clueless APC administration has bequeathed to the nation. Under my watch as the president, I will leverage the nationalistic instincts inherent in Nigerian citizens to drive national development both from the individual and from the community in a vertical and horizontal manner.”
As a party man, the Gov. did not shut all the doors and has said at several occasions that he is disposed to support and work with whoever emerges as the Candidate of the PDP.
It is worthy of note that the level of inclusivism, dynamism, eloquence and speed with which Gov. Mohammed brought into his campaign and winning the hearts of the delegates has left other delegates spell bound. Feedback from the field indicate that he is the President Nigeria is waiting for in 2023.
