Former Minister of Defence and 2023 Presidential candidate for the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, emphasized that Nigeria possesses the necessary human resources and assets to quell the ongoing insecurity crisis.
Addressing attendees at the NNPP’s Mini National Convention in Abuja, Kwankwaso asserted that with proper equipment and support, the nation’s military could effectively address the current security challenges.
He underscored the urgent need for a change in leadership style, pointing out that both the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) have fallen short in addressing the nation’s needs amidst the prevailing circumstances.
The former Kano Governor said “We have taken note of the challenges of the day because in many states, especially in northern Nigeria, our children are not going to schools now because of insecurity, because of poverty and so on. By implication, we are saying we will do whatever it takes to ensure security and to ensure that poverty is eradicated.
“We have all what it takes to do that, so that education can flourish, so that every child from primary to tertiary will go to school in this country.
“This party, is one of the major hopes that this country is having today. We are all aware that PDP has completely failed. Many of us decided in 2014, 2015 to bring in some positive changes.
“Unfortunately, we have seen what happened from 2015 to date. There is the same APC government. Therefore, as far as we are concerned, we have a failing party that is the APC. And we believe that this country requires an alternative to APC and of course, PDP and the only party, in my opinion, and based on facts, because NNPP today is the fastest growing party in this country.
“In many parts of this country, especially in northern Nigeria, particularly in my own part of the north, so many people have been chased out of their homes, so many have been killed. Some are in the bushes and in the forest under the care of bandits and other criminals.
“It looks like many people don’t care. It is even becoming a normal thing to go and beat people in their homes, on the roads, in the markets and so on. I believe it is only in this country that this sort of nonsense is happening.
“It is the responsibility of every responsible government to ensure peace of its people. As a former minister of defence and a former chief security officer, for eight years, I believe that we have adequate resources, we have enough manpower, we have all what it takes to protect Nigerians and peace in this country.”
On the challenges in the party, Kwankwaso said “before we came into this party, it’s very difficult to remember anybody who knew this party. Today, despite all the challenges that we had in 2023 election, we have moved on as a strong United party”.
He assured of consensus building and internal democracy in the party saying all our members will continue to have internal democracy within the party and everybody will be given an opportunity to attain his or her position.
Earlier in his remarks, the National Chairman of the party, Dr. Ajuji Ahmed said the current challenge facing the nation were imposed by several years of mishandling of the affairs of the country, through unprecedented corruption, mismanagement and continued “un-governance”.
The Chairman who urged all men and women of conscience and patriotism to join the party in the onerous task of averting a looming disaster and bring back this country from the edge of catastrophe, said, “the NNPP is not a Political Party owned by another entity; it is not a Political Party owned by any individual. NNPP is not owned by anything called NAGAFF or any other association; it is not owned by Kwankwasiyya, it is not a Party owned by Kwankwaso or anyone else.
Ahmed who noted that every nation, at its most epochal juncture, has a choice to confront its own dialectical reality or allow itself to be consumed by the grand contradictions within itself, said that the nation was in dire need of what he called a third option to animate the mass of citizens and galvanize them into achieving an inevitable “real change”.
“I deeply believe that today will mark the beginning of the “real change” in our march to confront the quagmire of political, economic and social challenges of our country.
“These are challenges that are not inevitable, they are challenges that are imposed on us, imposed on the country, on the common people of our society, occasioned by years of mishandling of the affairs of the country, through unprecedented corruption and mismanagement, and continued “ungovernance”.
“Unless you understand your role in society, you can never make a meaningful contribution. The Greeks understood this better by classifying societies into three types of people consisting of: The Idiots, The Tribesmen and The Citizens.
“Let us all be the true citizens of our country. Let us answer the patriotic call to duty and join hands across all divides and across the length and breadth of this nation to salvage our country from drifting into further hopelessness and an inevitable chaos.
“Let all men and women of conscience and patriotism join us in the onerous task of averting a looming disaster and bring back this country from the edge of catastrophe.
“Indeed, our country is beset with too many challenging problems threatening its continued survival. All of our useful endeavors must be channeled into finding workable solutions to our current communal and national existential tribulations.
“It is said that in Nigeria of today you are either going through a lot, or coming from a lot. Or you are about to enter a lot. A lot is going on with a lot of us. Such is the magnitude of the situation.
“At the root of the ongoing existential dilemma of this country is the growing uncertainty about our collective existence. And at the heart of this difficult outlook is the increasingly bleak future of our youth concerning their current ordeals of un-education, unemployment, a seemingly hopeless present, and a dangerously unpredictable future staring the majority of them directly in the face.
“The future of any society or nation is encapsulated in the belief of its youth in their individual and collective destiny. Society just cannot afford to fail them; but we as a nation evidently are failing our youth and stultifying their very belief and confidence in their own future.
“The current dire situation is represented graphically in one social media joke in which a man was asked for his advice to the coming generation. His reply was: Tell them not to come! This is the true extent of the desperate state of affairs about the future of our society. This is the hopeless situation that years of PDP misrule, followed by years of APC “un-governance” brought us to.
“However, fortunately, there is a choice and an option for the people of this country. The NNPP is the choice. NNPP is the option. The NNPP is not the Party of the future, but a Party of the present for the future.
“NNPP holds the key to the future of our youth. Our education for all policy is not just a mantra. It is the center peace of our philosophy of investing in the destiny of our youth, and the future of this our great country.”
On the crisis in the party that saw to the expulsion of some of its members, Dr. Ahmed said “the New Nigeria People’s Party, is a Party for all Nigerians. The NNPP is not a Political Party owned by another entity. It is not a Political Party owned by any individual. NNPP is not owned by anything called NAGAFF or any other association. It is not owned by Kwankwasiyya, it is not a Party owned by Kwankwaso or anyone else.
“I can also tell you for free NNPP does not belong to me. By the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and our extant Electoral Act, no individual or group should, could, or does own a Political Party.
“For those who are blatantly ignorant of this, they should realize that a Political Party is a public corporation that derives its existence by virtue of legal recognition by INEC. It is not a business association registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission.
“Individuals and groups are statutorily free to join, play roles, leave, rejoin, resign, be suspended, dismissed and expelled. And by whatsoever the provisions of its regulations, a Political Party, to remain as a serious corporate entity, has to sanction and discipline its members. So, enough should be enough about all the ongoing wishful thinking and blatant hallucinations.
“To our teeming population of youth in Nigeria, we call upon you, right here and right now, to embrace our Party; register yourself in the NNPP, be part of the vanguard for a true and real change in your future, in your education, in your destiny, and in the future development of your various communities, “real change” in your country and ultimately the mark you will leave during your sojourn on this earth.
“Stand up to be counted; stand up to make a difference. Stand up to the current rot and absolute blockage of the path of progress of the country’s development and the fulfilment of your dreams. Join the NNPP mass movement and help yourself to fulfil your current and future dreams.
“They say that every real change must begin from within. Within the NNPP itself as the next governing Party of this country, our internal governance structure will be centered on proper procedures in the conduct of our affairs.
“As a Party, we cannot thrive in the increasingly murky waters of Nigerian politics unless we close ranks at all levels, work very hard, and act in unison within the purview of laid down procedures.
“As we endeavor to build a great Party poised to play a crucial role in the governance of our country, we must all together endeavor to imbibe internal democratic ideals and practices.
“We must resolve to subject ourselves to Party discipline, follow laid down procedures for effective communication within the authority structure of the Party, and adhere faithfully to the provisions of the Party’s Constitution. NNPP has come of age with our elected Governor, our Senators, House of Representatives and House of Assembly members.
“The Party will serve as the umbilical cord as well as the constitutional umbrella for you come rain come shine. The Party therefore looks up to you to continue to be faithful to it by nurturing it to a greater pedestal.
“Your responsibilities to the Party in this regard is much, and we fully acknowledge and appreciate. However, for the Party to grow more rapidly, it looks up to its elected and appointed officials for a more robust commitment and support system to sustain its growth and further development.
Yesterday at the Mini National Convention, the NNPP ratified the appointment of its National Working Committee, NWC Members as well as an amendment of the Logo, the constitution, just as it changed its slogans.
The ratified NWC Members are Dr Ajuji Ahmed, Acting National Chairman; Prince Onu Nwaeze, Acting Deputy National Chairman South; Alhaji Abba Kawu Ali, Acting Deputy National Chairman North; Hon Bala Yunusa Muhammed, Acting National Organising Secretary; Ahmed Ladan Tafawa Balewa, Acting National Treasurer; Barrister Ladipupo Johnson, Acting National Publicity Secretary and Yakubu Shendan, Acting National Auditor.
