Peter Obi, the presidential candidate for the Labour Party, said in a television interview that youths are the key to his strategy for turning the largest economy in Africa into an export-based economy.

Production

“Nigerian youths are our most valuable asset,” Obi said. “They have a lot of productive energy and talent that needs to be unleashed and turned around. All they want is access to training and capital, and I know how to get that across to them.”

Furthermore, Obi explained his intention to make Port Harcourt and Aba ‘one town’ so as to increase the country’s production capacity and boost non-oil income.

He said that “I am going to make sure there a road, and facility that connects these two towns to turn around our productive sector which is going to be driven by export. Aba is already well-known for producing clothing and shoes; I’ll make PH a significant export seaport, with Aba serving as the location of the manufacturing. In the near future, our exports should not be less than $250 billion.”

Education

When asked how he would reform education and put an end to ongoing strikes, Obi said, “Considering that for us as a country, we have over 15 million out-of-school children, we need to invest in education.”

“One of the worst things you can do is not to allow institutions to run smoothly as expected. Our tertiary school intake is 9% when the global average is 38%. and even that 9% is suffering. It is not acceptable that a university professor should earn less than a councellor.“

“To turn around the tertiary institutions is to sit down with the bodies that are involved with it, find a solution that is a win-win for everybody. When you have an agreement, try to do everything possible to fulfil it and implement it religiously,” he added.

Religion, and Ethnicity

Regarding the method he will use to unify Nigeria as its president, the Labour party flagbearer said, “I will ensure that every part of Nigeria is included, there is justice in the land, things are done fairly, we will consult, negotiate, and ensure no one is left behind.”

In addition, Obi said ‘the issue of ethnicity and religion takes the back seat; those things surface when you are not doing the right thing. Show me anywhere in Nigeria where the Christians or the Muslims buy bread cheaper. Is there any part of the north where there is uninterrupted power supply? If you start doing the right thing, these issues will take a back seat.”