Hello,

How are you doing? I hope you; your friends and your family are keeping safe? Although it might not seem like it, COVID-19 is still very much with us. Regular hand washing, wearing a mask and taking the vaccine are still the most reliable ways to protect yourself and your family.

It’s been an exciting last fortnight for me. I joined the rest of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members to make decisions in the best interests of our dear country. I must say the successful conduct of the PDP National Convention is a clear and definitive step in our quest to rescue Nigeria.

If the past six years have taught us anything in Nigeria, it is that elections have consequences. Also, we cannot leave the running of Nigeria in the hands of people who cannot apply innovative thinking to solving the core problems we face as a nation.

I have heard people say that both political parties are the same. That the PDP and the All Progressives Congress (APC) are twins. But, even identical twins are different. So to those who share this thinking, I have this to say: interrogate the product. Have the last six years been better than the previous 16? As a nation, we must never forget how we got here.

We have gone from a nation inspiring the return of bright young minds to one that is exporting its talents wholesale. We have effectively retrogressed to the ’80s.

Let me say emphatically: The PDP is the only party in Nigeria right now with the spread and infrastructure to rescue Nigeria. And as has been shown by how we ran our convention, we also have the innovative thinking required to rescue Nigeria.

So, will you join us in Operation Rescue Nigeria?

We cannot move Nigeria forward by focusing on the problems. Yes, Nigeria has been plagued by bad governance, corruption and poverty. The solution to our problem lies in innovative thinking around the cause of these problems. We need to see opportunities.

The Oyo State example shows that actual development comes from human resources investment and attracting solid investors by promoting our comparative advantage. Offering the masses money to trade or farm is just a roundabout way of entrenching poverty.

They say teach a man to fish, do not hand him fish. In the 21^st century, we say: Provide the man with the necessary infrastructure. He will expand his fishing business, sell to people who don’t live in the coastal regions and then build a multinational that employs thousands.

So, as the 2023 elections draw near, begin to think of how you can be part of this rescue operation. It is time to unite. The next elections are not a chance to choose between good and evil; elections are an opportunity to pick the best of all options put forward. And this I can assure you: the PDP will put our best forward.

You may have heard of the political big-wigs who have decided to sheath their swords and join the PDP in this rescue operation. Remember, this is not the time for us to second-guess their motives or latch on to old grievances. It is not the time to question what they did in the past and how they contributed to the present mess. Doing that will only serve the interests of those who know that the more fragmented and divided we are, the easier we would be to conquer.

We are better together, and the PDP is ready to lead the charge.

 

Before I go, let me share the book I will be reading this month. I will be reading “The Prosperity Paradox: How Innovation Can Lift Nations Out of Poverty,” co-authored by Clayton M.Christensen, Efosa Ojomo and Karen Dillon. I will share insights from my reading in the coming weeks. Please read along with me.

Talk to you again soon.