By Olalekan Bilesanmi

One of the aspirants for the national chairmanship of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Ibrahim Emokpaire, has praised President Muhammadu Buhari for his ability to excel despite the odds facing his government.

•Chief Ibrahim Emokpaire

Speaking during his formal declaration to run for the APC top office in Abuja, Emokpaire expressed his admiration for Buhari’s visionary and extraordinary leadership.

Speaking why he decided to join the race, Emokpaire said his vision was to reposition the party.   “The reasons for making myself available to serve my party, our people and country are simplified and not far-fetched. They include but not limited to my desire to effect a significant paradigm shift”, the aspirant said.

According to him, that competency and aptitude to deliver on promise, capacity to harness resources and the fact that he is corruption free are some of the attributes that make him better for the job of the national chairmanship of the APC.

“My mission is to reposition the All Progressives Congress (APC) for growth nationwide while my vision is to expand the party and sustain its relevance in Nigeria’s political space.

“I am here to help build an all-inclusive, more people focused, result oriented and forward-looking party structure based on a purposeful and visionary leadership, which would be essentially about the insight, foresight and blueprint for the future of APC”, Emokpaire said.

He also said he would address the seeming intractable problems that impede progress traceable to the skewed priorities of some greedy and corrupt politicians, adding that the problems were manmade and not insurmountable.

“My conviction for a more positive political party is guided by the fundamental belief that real and lasting prosperity must begin with all of us, be entrenched by all and shared by all. I and my team shall evolve the kind of paradigm shift that will help inspire generations of party faithful and dynamic youthful participation toward a more productive and gainful politicking”, the aspirant pointed out.

“We shall constructively work our way back from the brink of foreseeable decline and the many divisions threatening to alienate us from cohesive coexistence, and as a coalition peopled by one purpose. My team shall strive to bring back those time-tested values, which the enemies of party politics have conspired to replace by false promises.

“ I wish to offer myself to serve you as National Chairman of our great party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), and put at the disposal of the party, our peoples and country at large, the collective sum total of my pedigree, wealth of political experience, expertise and professionalism, which by the grace of God stands me in good stead for the onerous challenges ahead. You won’t be disappointed!!”

He pledged to remain steadfast in the pursuit of constructive goals which he said he had outlined to achieve in the course of his stewardship as the next APC National Chairman, adding that “achieving these goals may be daunting, but I will be strategic and resolute,” he said.

While recognizing the party leadership, he described Asiwaju Bola Tinubu as irrepressible and indefatigable personality.

“My respect goes to eminent leaders of our great party, Chief Abdulkareem Adebisi Bamidele Akande, Chief John Odigie Oyegun, among others. I seize this opportunity to specifically acknowledge the immense contributions of APC leaders nationwide in their respective leadership capacities,” Emokpaire said.