The presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has disclosed that he has not foreclosed stepping down from the February 25 presidential election.
However, he said he would only do so if he finds a better candidate contesting in the election.
He said this on Wednesday during his speech at the British Royal Institute of International Affairs, popularly known as Chatham House.
Kwankwaso said that his touted alliance with Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) did not come to fruition because of the media hype around the LP candidate at the time.
“On Labour Party, I was initially interested in working with them, but at that time, they were at peak of the media hype and we couldn’t reach a compromise.
“Our party (NNPP) is a National Party, and we’re commanding the support of the masses,” he said.
Reeling out his credentials, the former Kano governor said, “I built over 500 classrooms while I was governor of Kano state, and when elected I will bring more people on board to tackle education needs in Nigeria.”
Kwankwaso said that if elected, he would revamp the economy and create a conducive environment for businesses to thrive and attract more foreign direct investment.
He also vowed to tackle poor education and prevalent poverty in Northern Nigeria.
On insecurity, Kwankwaso recounted his time as Minister of Defence, promising to boost the morale of the armed forces through adequate funding and recruitment of more personnel.
The NNPP flagbearer said he is equipped to be president because “I understand the issues involved, the mistakes that were made, the wrong priorities that were set, and together with our team, we are better connected with the hopes and aspirations of the Nigerian citizens.”
He added that he has a “practical plan” to address the challenges confronting Nigeria.
“My legacy, I want to unite the country, we want to have a Nigeria that will not face insecurity, economic hardship and ASUU/Industrial strikes. We want to bring everybody on board,” he said.
Kwankwaso praised the efforts of Nigerians in the diaspora and promised to put in place mechanisms to ensure diaspora voting if elected.
“My dear compatriots in the Diaspora, we’re proud of your achievements, we’re even more proud of your contributions to make the World a better place. Let me pledge that if I become president, we shall make Nigeria an attractive destination for investment
“We believe that you’ve a better role to play back at home under our administration, and we also pledge to make the necessary for those who choose to stay back in their host countries to vote in the elections,” he said.