The speech of His Excellency President Muhammadu Buhari at the unveiling of the PCC and the Action Plan of the APC Presidential candidate delivered Friday, October 21, 2022
1. I am glad to be here today to join leaders and members of our great Party on this yet another epochal occasion of unveiling the Action Plans of our Presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Jagaban, my friend, partner, and brother.
2. It is indeed an important occasion for two reasons. First, it is significant to note that this unveiling is the third by our Party. I have had the opportunity of unveiling two Action Plans. I had the privilege of presenting our party’s manifesto of Change in 2014. It was a manifesto that signposted our collective desire to arrest the directionless journey our country was headed under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The second time was in 2018 when I unveiled the Next Level agenda of our government.
3. The second reason this occasion is significant is that we are having our first transition within our party where I am in the last year of my two-term mandate, and we have a new candidate to lead our party into another Presidential election.
4. The events preceding our Presidential primaries and the conduct of the primaries
were important milestones in the development of our internal democracy and party politics. I must congratulate the leadership of our party, other stakeholders, and the entire party members for the success of the exercise. We can say with confidence, that our party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), is charting a steady course in our journey towards enthroning lasting democratic culture in our body polity.
5. I want to formally express my gratitude to all our Party officials in the National Executive Council, the Zonal, State, Senatorial, Local Government, and Ward executives for their unalloyed support for me and the great efforts and outstanding commitment to the cause of our Party during our previous campaigns, elections, and during our over seven years in government so far.
6. It is important for us as members of APC to understand the importance of building a strong and purposeful Political Party. You would recall that the project of pulling our country back from the precipice in 2015 was made possible by putting together a formidable Political Party peopled by many who have made a vow to work for a Nigeria we all can be proud of.
7. In our seven years journey as a government, we have every reason to be proud of our achievements. Despite the unfavourable circumstances of global economic downturns, the Covid-19 pandemic that practically grounded the world for over a year and upset many nations’ growth, very low international oil prices resulting in low revenue, and our local challenges of insecurity, and inherited systemic corruption, we have managed to make our country stable and lay a solid foundation for progressive growth.
8. Today, we can say that our security personnel are better equipped and motivated to continue their activities in the battlefield that have led to massive and successive operational successes in our quest to secure our country by providing adequate security for lives and property of all citizens.
The efforts of our men and women in the armed forces over the last years are beginning to yield positive outcomes. We are gradually taking back our country from the bandits, kidnappers, and terrorists in the northeast and northwest and other parts of our country.
Our administration remains committed to progressively eliminate all flashpoints of insecurity nationwide. We would triumph over the enemies of our country; in whatever forms and shapes they appear.
Our commitment to stimulate our nation’s economy through massive infrastructural development has not been misplaced. We are already seeing the unprecedented infrastructure across the country. The real impacts of our efforts will be felt more as the various projects are completed and put to use in the coming days.
9. It is worth reiterating the fact that we are stronger today only because we continue to support the Party. For us to develop an enduring democracy in our country, we must first subscribe to the supremacy of our Political Party. We must subject ourselves to the rules and learn to operate within the guidelines as stipulated in our Party’s Constitution.
10. It is on this note that I want to rally all our party members behind our candidate, Asiwaju Tinubu in our determination to continue to lead this country so that we can consolidate on our achievements and do more. It would be disastrous to allow a situation that will lead to the reversal of the progress our country has made. Let me add that i joyfully accept the position of the chairman of campaign council we are unveiling today.
11. Our candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu is too well known for his capacity and can-do spirit. He stands tall in his track records as a democrat, a champion of the rule of law, a man at home in every part of our country, and a truly visionary leader.
I will be at the forefront of this campaign. This election is even more important than the election of 2015 that brought us into power. The costs of losing the gains our country has made is much more than the need to stop the haemorrhage that led to our coming together nearly nine years ago.
12. I, therefore, want to assure all party members and supporters of our government that I will be at the forefront of this campaign. This election is even more important than the election of 2015 that brought us into power. The costs of losing the gains our country has made is much more than the need to stop the haemorrhage that led to our coming together nearly nine years ago.
13. I want to charge every member to put in all their efforts during the next four and half months of campaign to ensure we record a resounding victory in all our elections nationwide. The future of this country is safer in our hands.
14. At this juncture, I would like to congratulate our Presidential candidate and his running mate, Senator Kashim Shetima, for the victory at the Primaries. I want also to commend the maturity and sportsmanship of other contestants. I am glad to know that most of our aspirants transferred their structures, including campaign offices to our party’s candidate after the primaries. This is a demonstration of the commitment of our party leaders and members to the cause of democratic practices.
15. Similarly, it is important for all our Party members to see themselves as ambassadors of our progressive principles and exemplify the best of us wherever they find themselves.
16. I thank you for the job you are doing for us as Party members and for our government. I wish us a successful campaign and outcomes in the 2023 elections. God bless our party.
God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria
English