Dr. Davidson Isibor Akhimien, the presidential candidate of Grassroots Growth Celebration of Nigeria (GDPN) in an interview with DAILY POST in Abuja defined that the US intentionally denied the nation of arms buy to confront insecurity in Nigeria.
The previous Intelligence Chief within the Nigerian Military mentioned, the Military lacked trendy tools and coaching to struggle insurgency and different types of criminalities.
Excerpts:
Because the 2019 normal elections draw shut amid heightened insecurity, how do you plan to sort out insecurity in a different way from the way in which the present authorities is doing?
I’m going to sort out insecurity from two main fronts that are going to be fairly a departure from the fashion the current authorities is adopting. Like I all the time say, we’re going to sort out insecurity of terrorism within the Northeast, Nigeria. I’m going to have it from the home political financial system and worldwide political financial system. We’re going to be our navy method. We’re going to be strengthening our armed forces. We’re retooling and re-equipping our armed forces, altering our stock to trendy stock that’s required for the 21st century uneven form of conflict struggle. In fact, as it’s in the present day, many of the insurgents are skilled in modern-day preventing methods. Terrorists use very trendy armaments and so by no means in our historical past ought to terrorists be higher armed than our armed forces and we must always not permit ragtag military whereas terrorists are higher geared up than them. So once I develop into President, I’m going to re-kit our military in tandem with the 21st-century necessities.
Terrorism anyplace on this planet isn’t fought alone by the affected nation, however it appears Nigeria is left alone preventing its personal terrorists. Different nations of the world will not be concerned with aiding Nigeria. What do you suppose went mistaken?
That’s what I used to be speaking about when it comes to the home political financial system and a world political financial system. In the event you take a look at the world in the present day in steadiness of energy scenario in worldwide financial system, you can see that Nigeria occurs to be deprived. Recall when President Barack Obama was in energy and Nigerian management underneath Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan requested for arms to be bought from the US, we had been denied. We went to the UK to buy arms, United States prevailed on the UK to disclaim us and so they did. We went to Israel, they denied, we went to South Africa they denied on account of stress mounted by the US, so Nigeria went to the black market and the factor burst. So it is vital for Nigeria management to know the interaction of home political financial system and worldwide political financial system with regards to in search of cooperation within the struggle towards terrorism.
So for those who finally develop into the president, would you be doing this instantly to ensure that the nation to take pleasure in cooperation of different nations within the struggle towards terrorism.
Your international coverage must be astute. Your diploma and stage of diplomacy must be in a way that pulls nations to your nation. We now have what we name not solely member of worldwide communities, however worldwide non-governmental organisations which go a protracted approach to making certain that you’ve got relationship with different international locations within the worldwide area. All of those are throughout the ambit of worldwide political financial system.
What legacy would you be remembered for within the subsequent 20 years after you have got left presidency as an example?
My legacy can be recognized for industrialization of the nation. Industrialization and empowerment of the youth section of the society. The entrenchment of the human capability by a method of modernized academic system. We’ll put up buildings to make sure each baby is captured in our academic system and to make sure that by no means once more would there be an illiterate Nigerian.
Has President MuhammaduBuhari led authorities performed something good that’s accredited of you?
Sure, in reality, this authorities is passionately preventing corruption and for my part, they’re succeeding. They’re preventing corruption in each sphere of the system and any proper pondering Nigerian ought to conform to that.
Forward of 2019 elections, how do you react to the development of vote shopping for by some politicians and the way can this menace be tackled?
It is necessary Nigerians ought to know that the phenomenon of vote shopping for is an insult to their humanity, an aberration to their humanity, and to their individuality. Why ought to politicians purchase your vote when he must earn your vote? I have to say that the political class is culpable in vote shopping for and vote promoting phenomenon. A politician that comes to purchase your vote isn’t concerned with your welfare. Nigerians ought to know that form of politician has made democracy and governance in Nigeria transactional. That’s to say, shopping for and promoting, the identical method one buys tomatoes and pepper and it means voter has been decreased to a commodity. Nigerians ought to know that they’ve extra worth and price than that. They need to say no to vote shopping for and any contestant that involves them for vote shopping for ought to be instantly given zero scorecard.
Is the Grassroots Growth Celebration of Nigeria envisaging alliances with different political events with a purpose to deepen your base forward of 2019 elections given the truth that GDPN is presenting you as presidential candidate for the primary time?
The issue of some political events in Nigeria is considerably lack of ideologies. As a brand new entrant into the political house, we’ve include a really sturdy political ideology; we imagine in our ideology and for us, it’s a new factor altogether. We now have come into politics to play politics of 21st century; politics of growth. Politics that may function a counter-culture to the prevailing political tradition of underdevelopment. Ours is about bringing a revolution into the political house. We’re an ideologically primarily based occasion. We stand by our ideology and we will align with events that share comparable ideology with us.
What really do you suppose went mistaken with this nation that arouses your deep concern?
You’re a younger man and it’s possible you’ll not know what occurred up to now. So many issues occurred. We now have skilled a trajectory of awkward expertise and a downward slide in our social life and the financial system. The livelihood of a mean Nigerian in a world area has been on a downward spiral for the reason that 80s to the place we at the moment are. In the event you undergo your historical past very effectively, you uncover that we aren’t the place we was once. Certainly, we’re throttling in the direction of an abyss. There may be insecurity in all places. There may be the shortcoming of a mean Nigerian to push his life ahead and the dearth of inexpensive lodging in all places within the nation. Huge unemployment with over 20 million individuals ought to give anyone like me sleepless nights. That may be a big proportion. With about 1.8million Internally Displace Individuals (IDPs) in Nigeria as at in the present day, that doesn’t communicate effectively of a rustic like ours.
In the event you ask me, ”once I develop into President, what is going to I love to do” it’s like rebuilding Nigeria once more. We’re haemorrhaging and bleeding in each space of societal life. Now, my administration will probably be restoring safety of lives and properties of Nigerians in order that they will sleep with their eyes closed. Safety is a main duty of presidency as captured within the 1999 structure as amended.
The opposite factor we’re going to be is schooling which may be very key for me. For me as a person, I weep and I take into account as a denial of basic human proper of any citizen that’s disadvantaged of schooling. While you speak about a rustic of 200 million individuals, we ought to be speaking about 200 million extremely developed minds and what I imply is with sound schooling. Sadly, the proportion of illiterate individuals is inside a neighbourhood of 60% of all the inhabitants and this isn’t adequate. The extent of educated individuals is instantly proportional to the event of that nation. After we are speaking of constructing infrastructure, minds have to be developed to keep up that infrastructure, if not, you discover out that each one your funding in that infrastructure won’t be sustainable. Training is essential. Educate a person and you’ve got began the constructing blocks of a nation, as a result of he’ll know methods to comport himself, even, the implications of inhabitants explosion.
The historical past of governance in Nigeria has been the historical past of defending the curiosity of cabals than delivering dividends of democracy. How would you strike a steadiness between these two as President?
They’re cabals in all places on this planet. In any energy system, cabals exist. But it surely takes the persona of any chief to interrupt by means of any cabals. It takes the imaginative and prescient, the tenacity and temerity to interrupt by means of cabals that stand in the way in which of curiosity of the nation. Who’re people who stand in the way in which of a pacesetter within the guise of cabals? You’re voted in as a president and you could not permit cabals to cease you from discharging your duties.