.jpg)
Photo: Atiku Abubakar .
Atiku Abubakar a Former Vice President, under President Olusegun Obasanjo, says he would restructure Nigeria within six months if elected president in the 2019.
Delivering a lecture at the Chatham House in London, Atiku said he would offer a grant of $250 million each to the 36 states of the federation to challenge them to enhance their Internally Generated Revenue.
He it’s very easy because there is no state that you will call and say ‘I want to give you this responsibility together with the resources’, and will say ‘no’.”
He called on Nigerians people to hold their leaders accountable and would make Nigeria attractive for those living in diaspora to return.
“On the issue of youth, I am an employer of labour and most of that labour is youth-dominated and I make a lot of profits from my businesses.
“I don’t agree with the assumption that the youths are lazy or they are indolent. Certainly, I don’t. But I’m not surprised with the fellow (Buhari) who made that remark because he’s not an employer of labour, he has no business, he has no educational institution so he doesn’t relate with youth in schools so I don’t blame him.”
Beyond institutional and administrative reforms to improve operational efficiency of the revenue agencies, he said the federating units will be challenged to double their efforts in rebuilding the fiscal-social contract, by enhancing service delivery in key areas such as health, education, water supply and infrastructural development.
Atiku recently defected from the ruling All Progressives Congress to the opposition PDP, on whose platform he served as vice president, is seeking the party’s nomination to serve as its presidential flag bearer in the 2019 presidential election.
He criticised senators of his former party, APC, of betrayal following the “shocking and saddening” decision of the Senate not to grant devolution of power to the states during the constitutional amendment last year.
