Kwankwaso expands on his education blueprint and other ‘critical areas’
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) presidential candidate Rabiu Kwankwaso has expanded on his manifesto with a pledge to rescue education from collapse and save Nigeria from insecurity and economic regression.
“Our blueprint is the best for Nigeria. There is no time to enumerate everything because it is a 122-page document,” he said at his hustings at Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna at the weekend.
“But there are some critical areas, especially education, where we have decided that we will cancel payments for any form either for West African Examinations Council (WAEC) or National Examination Council (NECO) or Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) or application to any institution in this country. The idea is to allow children of the poor to attain the highest level in education.
“At the primary level we are going to build at least 500,000 classrooms for the over 20 million out-of-school children.”
NNPP National Chairman Ahmed Alkali gave an assurance that Kwankwaso, if elected President, would turn Nigeria into an El Dorado.
The country is neck deep woes, he said, and only the administration of Kwankwaso could rescue it from economic degradation and security crises.
“We have a leader in Kwankwaso, who is eminently qualified to drive Nigeria out of crises. He will take Nigeria to the promised land because he has what he takes to deliver the country.”
Alkali spoke at the North West NNPP presidential campaign in Kaduna when he handed over of the party’s flag to its governorship candidates in the North West, according to reporting by The Guardian.
NNPP Board of Trustees (BoT) Secretary Buba Galadima urged the North to vote their own, describing Kwankwaso as the authentic heir of the Sardauna of Sokoto.
“Nigeria, at this critical time needs not just a President, but a deliverer, and Kwankwaso is the only one that can save the country from myriad challenges,” added NNPP vice presidential candidate Isaac Idahosa.
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Gombe Assembly Minority Leader defects to NNPP
In the North East, Gombe State House of Assembly Minority Leader Bashir Barau has defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the NNPP, per The Guardian.
Barau, who represents Kaltungo West, was received into the NNPP at the weekend by its Gombe governorship candidate, Khamisu Mailantarki.
Before Barau’s defection, both the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the NNPP had three seats each in the Assembly. With his defection, the NNPP now has four and will form the minority caucus.
“I joined NNPP in the best interest of the state. Both APC and PDP lack the requisite leadership qualities to unite and develop the state,” he said.
Since the emergence of Mailantarki as the NNPP governorship candidate, aggrieved members of the APC and the PDP have been trooping to the party.
Some state lawmakers (two from APC and one from PDP) had earlier defected to the NNPP to increase its numbers in the Assembly.
Four former Deputy Chairmen from Billiri, Kwami and Nafada, and a former Councillor have also defected from the PDP to the NNPP.