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... says ‘I can perform better than Buhari’
Raymond Ozoji, Awka
Hon. Edward Obiefuna Ibuzo, incumbent member representing Onitsha-North 2 state constituency and Chairman House of Assembly Committee on Transport has declared his intention to run for the presidency in the 2019 general elections. Ibuzo exuded so much confidence, boasting that he could do better than president Muhammadu Buhari whom he described as a tragedy on Nigerians.
Ibuzo said, “In all honesty, I am 46 years old. I was born in 1972 and I believe from after the civil war which ended in 1970 till now, we have not had any Igbo president “noting that it was time for Ndigbo to run the affairs of the Nigerian nation.
He therefore recalled that in time past, it was said that presidency was going to be rotational among the geo-political zones. He made reference to the fact that the Hausas had done theirs and the Yorubas according to him, have had their fair share of the presidency. He observed that ever since, there has been a daunting gap in allowing an Igbo man to be president in Nigeria.
The lawmaker however posited that in spite of the relegation of Ndigbo in the polity, he is in support of one Nigeria devoid of division and brigandage, stressing that such was the ordeal during the civil war which yielded no positive results except balcanisation of the entire nation. He added that he is in support of a Nigeria where the Igbo man would attain presidency.
Ibuzo further disclosed that his ambition for the presidency was borne out of the love he has for the unity of the country, emphasizing that he has the wealth of experience as well as administrative acumen to place Nigeria on the part of economic prosperity, social cohesion and political stability. The lawmaker said he had lived in Germany, London, Canada, Netherlands, United States of America and other parts of the globe pointing out that with his wealth of knowledge and experience, he believes he can do better than president Muhammadu Buhari.
To this end therefore, Ibuzo emphasized that it was time youths took over leadership from the old and the elderly in Nigeria. He said judging from history, president Muhammadu Buhari was younger than him when he became the then military head of state noting that it was of paramount importance that the present crop of old leaders relinquished political power to the younger generation.
According to him, the security of the nation is at the zero level, stressing that Buhari has done virtually nothing on the security of lives and property of the citizenry as evident in the killings, maimings and rapping of women and girls on account of the heinous activities of herdsmen, Boko haram sect and other militia groups in the country. To this end, Ibuzo said his major priority as president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria would be to address youth empowerment head on pointing out that immorality and criminality among youths abound because they are practically unemployed and government does not have them in the frontburner of its policies and programmes.
He was of the opinion that if Nigeria wishes to practise what he termed true democracy, the citizenry should jettison the likes of president Muhammadu Buhari, Olusegun Obasanjo, Atiku Abubakar as well as all elderly men and women still seeking elective offices and political powers and enthrone the younger generation. Ibuzo stated that to actualise his presidential ambition in 2019, he would run on the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) as he has the firm belief that only someone from APGA in the southeast can redeem Nigeria from its socio-economic and political quagmire.
