A former governor of Anambra State, Peter Gregory Obi, has declared that he will contest for the office of the President in 2023 if the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) zoned the ticket to the Southern part of the country.
The PDP vice-presidential candidate in the 2019 presidential poll, in an interview with Njenje Media and monitored by our correspondent, said though he is capable of turning around the fortunes of the country, he will wait on the decision of the PDP before he declares his intention.
According to him “All the elections that I followed in the past, the party that I belong today, the PDP made a pronouncement and took a stand.
“At least in 2019 when I was involved, where I can say Atiku graciously chose me as his running mate which I remain eternally grateful to him for, the party decided that the candidate should come from the North and that was what the party decided. And I believe that the party owes it a duty to say what their stand is.
“If their stand today is South, be rest assured I am aspiring, if they say North, I can’t do otherwise or they chose the option that everybody is free, then, of course, you will be hearing from me.”
The former governor while affirming his commitment to building a better Nigeria, advised all and sundry to choose a candidate who is competent and most importantly has integrity.
“What we are looking for in this country today are people of integrity, people of conscience, less greedy people. Educational qualification is not a measure of integrity; it doesn’t guarantee that somebody is less greedy or that people have a conscience,” he further said.
He further added, “I have seen people here acquire what they don’t need. I saw it while I was serving. To fight corruption here, you need somebody who has integrity, who is not greedy, who has a conscience. If you have that, fighting corruption is easy, because, if you who is in charge is not stealing, you will reduce stealing by 50 to 70 per cent.
“And it is critical that you have somebody who is like that. It is not when people are acquiring lands, houses, everything they don’t need; they want to live a lifestyle that is far beyond the economy of Nigeria, far beyond their earnings, that is why the place is collapsing.
“That is why we have insecurity, that is why we have poverty. We need to manage the costs efficiently and these are the critical areas as you people know as you look for people who will govern the country in the future.”
