It is three days to the much spoken presidential election and the presidential candidates have concluded their campaign rallies, with the candidate of the All Progressive Congress, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, ending his on Tuesday in Lagos.
The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, ended his also in Lagos on Saturday, with strategizing and other relevant conclusions ongoing.
On Wednesday, Obi shared certain qualities that would guide the electorates in making a better choice of candidate.
According to him, the next president of Nigeria should have ‘character’, must be ‘competent’, ‘committed’ and must have ‘compassion’.
He tweeted, “Fellow Nigerians, it’s 3 days to go and in my quiet moments I know that Nigerians are wondering what Peter Obi is thinking. I will share my thoughts here because I have Nigeria on my mind!”
According to Obi, Nigerians are currently at a crossroad and need a leader to show the way forward, one who is prudent and principled.
Writing in pidgin English, he said, “We need person who sabi road; a person we go follow make this country better,” meaning, a leader who knows where he’s leading the country to so we all can follow after.
Speaking further about qualities that guarantee a better choice of presidential candidate, Obi advised Nigerians to vote someone who can “solve our problems.”
According to the former Anambra state governor, “the person of your choice must have these four qualities minimally:
“Character: A person with a proven record of fairness, honesty, and trust. We need an honest person with a verifiable background: We must know his real name. We must know where he said he schooled.
“We must know people who knew him then. We must know where he has been, what he has done, what he has said, and what he has been doing these past months during the campaigns.
“Competence: Someone who has the proven capability and the drive to move us forward. The person must have the required skills and must show the physical and mental ability to manage the affairs of Nigeria.
“The president we need must present the correct image of Nigeria abroad and stand tall among his peers at the United Nations and other international forums.
“Commitment: We need someone who is committed and has the capacity to stop official corruption in this country. We have heard far too many talks about change. Enough of empty promises! We are tired of hearing sorry stories.
“We want real changes, not endless pity parties and porous pledges.
“Compassion: We want a leader who is concerned about the welfare of Nigerians, not his clique of praise singers. Our fellow citizens are in IDP camps. I spent Christmas and New Year with them.
“They should be home. People die daily, kidnapped, killed, and raped. No one in government offers actionable concerns. It must end. We need a leader with the courage to do whatever it takes to bring relief to our citizens in distress.”
