Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, met with northern political heavyweights from the 19 northern states on Thursday as coalition negotiations heat up for the 2027 presidential election.
Hundreds of political leaders assembled in Abuja under the auspices of the National Political Consultative Group (NPCG) North for the event, which was arranged by the secretariat of the newly formed coalition.
During his speech, prominent opposition unity advocate Atiku Abubakar reflected on his tenure alongside former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
He notably mentioned the order given to service chiefs to either put an end to the Boko Haram insurgency or step down in their response to it.
This ultimatum was effective. In a matter of weeks or months, the insurgency was crushed. It had been finished by the time we left. I was in utter surprise. However, after we departed, it reappeared,” Atiku said, stressing that the problem was not entirely resolved.
In addition, Atiku emphasized the administration’s initiatives to address police shortcomings, bringing up the notable underpolicing in Nigeria as documented by the UN.
“I told the president that Nigeria is sorely underpoliced, Mr. President. What can we do, he inquired? I informed him that other police colleges in the states were closed and recommended that they be reopened along with additional cops. “And we did exactly that,” Atiku said.
Atiku continued by outlining the creative way the Obasanjo government procured weapons for the police, avoiding onerous contracting processes and speaking with police officers and diplomats directly to obtain necessary equipment.
With 340,000 police officers entrusted with protecting a population of 240 million, Nigeria still has a terrible police-to-population ratio, Atiku said, notwithstanding their efforts. The sharp contrast with Egypt, which has one million police personnel for every 100 million citizens, was brought up by him.
Read Also: Atiku, Peter Obi, Amaechi, & Other Top Coalition Leaders Hold Crucial Expanded Meeting in Abuja
“These are obstacles we have to confront head-on,” Atiku emphasized, highlighting the necessity of extensive changes in Nigeria’s security sector.
Atiku turned his thoughts to education and the efforts made to increase access, especially in the North, under the Obasanjo administration. He referenced the Universal Basic school Act, which gave all Nigerian students free and mandatory access to basic and secondary school, as well as the implementation of an education fee to fund educational priorities.
Atiku also became down when he described how he saw the magnitude of the Almajiri situation during a visit to Daura, President Muhammadu Buhari’s hometown.
He said, “I almost cried.” I arrived at Katsina airport, and there were throngs of Almajiri kids on the way to Daura. The former Katsina College, where many of our first republic leaders attended, is located here. “Young boys in their twenties, thirties, and forties, from Katsina to Daura and back again, are now overrunning it,” he claimed.
“These are absolutely severe problems. Their focus extends beyond us to include our kids and grandkids.
I tell my kids, ‘Thank God, I’ve lived my life. This, however, is about you and your children. These are issues that we need to address.
