New Telegraph

Neither PDP nor APC can produce good leaders, says Utomi

• Says Buhari’s govt most corrupt in Nigeria’s history

The National Leader of Labour Party, (LP), Prof. Pat Utomi, has said his 2012 Leadership Newspaper Annual Lecture gave birth to the All Progressives Congress (APC) and that people who hijacked power then never wanted people like him to come closer. He also stated that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the APC with structural deficiency by reason of their transactional politics cannot produce good leaders.

 

Utomi, a professor of Political Economics and Management, made the assertion in Benin City, Edo State, at a one-day sensitization programme organized by “Nigeria can’t continue like this” NCC-LIT, with the theme: “Supporters of good governance.”

He said: “APC started from a lecture that I gave at the Leadership Newspaper Annual Lecture in 2012 with the title, ‘Political Parties: Will Opposition Save Nigeria?’ at the Sheraton Hotels.

When I finished the lecture, Chief Paul Unongo accosted me and said: Can I just close this gate so that about 1,000 persons at the lecture will not go until we know how opposition political parties should be created? “On the high table were Muhammudu Buhari, Bola Tinubu, Bisi Akande and others.

 

At that meeting, I was mandated to go and write the APC manifesto with the Vice President Yomi Osibanjo. But from day one it seems that people that have captured power do not want people like us around, and I just decided to stay on my own.

“What attracted some persons like us was the anti- corruption thing, because he said that when elected, he will kill corruption, so that Nigeria can make progress, but because of this transactional thing, we can see what has become of the government and in my opinion, this government is the most corrupt Nigeria has ever had.

 

“ASUU has been on strike forever, and look at what they are just asking for and it is for the sake of our children and this is what one man called Accountant General can just take from our treasury. You can see that their conscience doesn’t worry them again, because of the structure.

He said the desire to change Nigeria made him started working with some persons on the need for a third force and that made him to start working with some groups including the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), the Labour Commission from the 36 states of the country and that was how the Labour Party was allied to the Labour Congress.

“So, when some people began to project me for the presidency, and Peter Obi said the PDP thing will not work for him and came to the LP, I said okay, I will step down for him, because I am for anything that will make Nigeria work.” He outlined how to build a better structure to include the Labor Movement, political groups with the good objectives, as well as collaboration with civil society groups, adding that “our challenge is only of vigilance.”

 

He assured that Nigeria will rise again, despite its economic challenges, kidnappings, and killings as a result of insurgency. Earlier, a chieftain of the Labor Party, Comrade Tony Akeni, said they were pleased with the partnership and status of Peter Obi, the presidential standardbearer of the party, just as he hailed the contributions of Professor Pat Utomi.

On his part, Chief Patrick Eholor described Peter Obi’s movement as divinely inclined, urging Nigerians to give it the necessary consideration ahead of the presidential election.

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