Congress (APC), Muhammadu Buhari in the north, come February 14, 2015.
This was the assertion of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which noted that
President Jonathan’s soaring popularity among the voting population across the
country is an evidence.
Speaking through its National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, in a statement,
Saturday, the party said President Jonathan will beat Buhari with more than two-third of
the total votes cast, as well as the required 25 percent in all the states of the federation.
Metuh noted that this was not only because the PDP controls 12 out of the 19 states of
the region, but also because the citizens are pleased with the numerous development projects he executed in the region.
The PDP said the various projects and appointments in the north have placed
Jonathan ahead of Buhari in the mind of the people of the north, especially due to the fact
that the APC presidential candidate never executed any project in the region when he
was head of state and has so far failed to articulate an acceptable blue-print for development.
“Indeed, Nigerians in the north are eager to re-elect President Goodluck Jonathan come
February 14, 2015. Voters in the region appreciate the direct positive impact of the
numerous development projects executed by the Jonathan administration in all sectors of
life.
“They appreciate the fact that recognizing that agriculture is the mainstay of the
northern economy, President Jonathan ensured that out of the 2.7 million direct
farm jobs achieved by his administration, over 2 million are in the north.
“They appreciate the fact that President Jonathan established the e-wallet system,
which eliminated the corruption in the distribution of fertilizer and other farmputs,
making the products directly accessible to millions of farmers in the region thereby
boosting their productivity. They appreciate the fact that silos are brimming and food
pyramids are returning in the north.
“In education, President Jonathan’s imprint in the north remains indelible. Today, the
once relegated Almajiri boys can now go to school following the establishment of the
Almajiri System of Education, the first of its kind, with over 150 special schools already
built, while others are nearing completion, a noble idea, General Buhari never thought of
when he was head of state.
“Also, out of the 14 new universities established by President Jonathan, 9 are
located in the northern states thereby ensuring that all states of the region have a
federal university. This is in addition to the establishment of new secondary schools and
training of teachers for quality education in the region.
“Furthermore our citizens in the north are happy with President Jonathan for his efforts
in tackling desertification in the region especially with the establish of more than 80
km of 15–row Green Belt in addition to the Presidential Initiative on Afforestation in
Kano and 10 other Northern States”.
Another reason cited by the PDP was the increased attention given to the health needs
of the region, especially the interventions towards polio eradication and treatment of
VVF among others.
The party also noted that roads in the region, that have been abandoned for long
have received serious attention under Jonathan, citing the Kano-Maiduguri
highway, the longest stretch in the country.
Other projects cited by the party include revitalization of the railways, especially the
rehabilitation of the Minna-Kaduna-Zaria- Kano narrow gauge, the Markurdi-Lafia-
Kuru-Bauchi-Gombe-Ashaka-Maiduguri line and the branch line from Kafanchan to
Kaduna, the dredging of the River Niger from Lokoja to Baro in Niger State, the
acceleration of work on the Geregu power station, the 700MW Zungeru Hydro-Power,
the 3,050MW Mambilla Hydro-Power and various dam projects including the
Kashimbila Multipurpose Dam, which is being built to contain flood from Lake Nyos in
Cameroon.
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