Who Can You Trust Among Us?–Tinubu Asks Organized Labour

The 2023 presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, has promised to make fiscal and monetary policies work for Nigerian workers.

Tinubu said that his vision for Nigeria is to build a nation where there will be enough jobs with good pay package, adding that he world create opportunities for young people to thrive in emerging sectors such as digital economy, entertainment and culture, and tourism.

A statement from Tinubu Media Office signed by Tunde Rahman, said that the former Lagos State governor stated this on Monday in Abuja during a Townhall meeting with Organised Labour.

He said: “My Action Plan for a Better Nigeria, sets out a vision of opportunity, social justice and prosperity for all. I seek a Nigeria where sufficient jobs with decent wages give people the chance to live better lives. Where the private sector thrives, we will not disrupt it. However, where the private sector cannot do it alone, my government will take the lead in lending a helping hand.

“For young Nigerians, my goal will be to open the doors wide to emerging sectors such as the digital economy, entertainment and culture, and tourism. Specific policies will empower women and young people to become more active in our nation’s leadership.

“Our industrial policy will help Nigerian businesses manufacture, create, and invent more of the goods and services we require and to export more of those products across the globe. We will modernise and expand public infrastructure to create jobs, develop skills and spur rapid growth across all economic sectors, giving real opportunity to those who previously only dreamed of it.”

The APC standard bearer also boasted that he is the most qualified among the presidential candidates in next year’s election, adding that during his time as governor of Lagos State, he propelled the state to becoming the 5th largest economy in Africa, a status it has maintained till date.

“Today, the questions you all you must ask yourselves are these: who can be trusted to accomplish all of this? The man who has done it before, or the man whose most lasting achievement as Vice President is the corrupt sale of national assets to his friends and cronies?

“Who has the better plan? The man whose blueprint guided the emergence of Lagos State as fifth largest economy in Africa or the man whose greatest pride is the amount of money he managed to bury in sand while his state’s infrastructure decayed and its workers suffered endless hardship?

“The choice is yours. But permit me to now talk a little about myself and my vision.

“I have always been and will continue to be a progressive democrat. In my worldview, government has a cardinal responsibility to work not only with business but also with labour to ensure that all constituent parts of our society are afforded their fair share of rewards without taking on undue hardship,” Tinubu said.

He further told organised labour that he is one of them in the fight for good governance. He averred that he has been at the vanguard of fighting the government for good cause all his life, a tendency which he noted led to him being detained and eventually forced into exile.

According to Tinubu, he has spent his political life advocating for the rights and interests of ordinary Nigerians as the organised labour also does, adding that as co-travellers on the same road, he hopes that that common trajectory continues.

“As Organised Labour, you have been at the forefront of the workers’ rights movement in Nigeria, championing economic fairness and the welfare of the average person, the weak and the forgotten,” he said.

“You have also been involved in the struggle for democracy and political rights. Your collective efforts breathe life into the democratic rights and economic ideals enshrined in our constitution.

“I can speak fondly of your impact on our nation because of my personal history on the frontlines of the social justice movement.

“I may be running for president now, but I was not always in this position. Long before I started running for the presidency, I was running away from military dictators angered by my important role in protests against them and their efforts to vanquish our democratic aspirations.

“The defining moment of my public life came during Nigeria’s struggle for democracy and my membership in the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) movement.

“I have dedicated my entire being to that cause. I was detained, then was forced into exile because of my refusal to accept anything less than a government based on the proposition that the will of the people is sovereign and should reign over armed might and imposition.”