By Godwin Anene
A former governor of Anambra State and presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Peter Obi, says he will abolish the current sharing formula in the country if elected elected as Nigeria’s President in the 2023 general elections.
The economist said instead of the sharing formula, he will entrench a ‘production formula’ in reviving the nation’s economy.
Obi spoke on Monday in Port Harcourt, Rivers state when he met with PDP stakeholders and delegates ahead of party presidential primaries holding this month in Abuja.
The former Anambra governor noted, “We must be a producing, not a sharing country. Sharing is finished, nothing to share again.”
On what is wrong with the country, the former Anambra state governor said, “It’s all about taking the people, our youths out of poverty. To start putting money in the human infrastructure. You can’t have a country where you are 158/152 in human development index and think you can develop.
“So I need to pull people out of poverty. We can’t allow our young people in their young age, with the resources this nation has, to be living with no means of livelihood. The country has nothing left to share anymore. Anybody expecting sharing should forget it. It is finished. We are now borrowing money.
“That’s why my basic function is to move the country from consumption to production. No more sharing formula. I’m going to put production formula in place. We must feed ourselves. We have enough land.
“Niger state is 76.3 square kilometers of land and they cannot feed selves, cannot feed Nigerian. Netherlands is 33 thousand square meters and they did one hundred and twenty billion dollars food exports, more than seven times what Nigeria earns from oil.
“I’m going to change every part of Nigeria. We are going to be an export machinery. Rivers state, for example, has Onne Port, Port Harcourt Ports. We have Aba Nnewi and we are going to export everything.”
On going for consultation in Rivers knowing Governor Nyesom Wike is an aspiring president on same PDP platform, Obi stated, “It’s a family. That I’m here (Rivers) is at the express permission of the governor of the state.
“Not only that he knew I was coming here, I gave my respect to his infrastructural development. The reception in Rivers has been fantastic. Very cordial and I’m going to call the governor to personally acknowledge this.”
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