Oghenevwede Ohwovoriole
Kingsley Moghalu, African Democratic Congress (ADC)’s presidential aspirant, has promised to increase operatives of the Nigeria Police from 250,000 to one million and make the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) independent if elected president in 2023.
He made the pledge on Tuesday at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja after picking his expression of interest and nomination forms. The ADC presidential nominations cost N25 million.
Speaking on widespread insecurity in Nigeria, he said, “We will take out whatever threatens the nation’s security because the political will to secure Nigeria is there. One life is too precious to be lost with me as a Nigerian president. We will take out anything that threatens the security and well-being of Nigeria. We will make use of intelligence agencies. The government lacks the political will to secure Nigeria.”
He further stated the security agencies would be “broken down” to “make them deliver.”
Moghalu added, “As president, I will reform the Nigeria Police Force. I will increase the police from 250,000 to one million operatives. It is through effective intelligence gathering that we can fight terrorism and win.”
While responding to questions from journalists, Moghalu, a political economist and ex-deputy governor of the CBN, said the 16 per cent inflation rate in Nigeria was a result of mismanagement.
“If there is high inflation, then it is a performance failure. When I become the president, I will ensure we have an independent CBN with competent leadership. Inflation is the most pernicious act on the poor. It erodes the ability of households to save and devalues the purchasing power of the currency,” stated Moghalu.
He also promised to resolve the lingering impasse between the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the Federal Government and put an end to ASUU strikes.
“I will resolve the ASUU crisis; allocate 20 per cent of Nigeria’s national budget to education. We will sit at a table and negotiate with ASUU. If they can spend N4 trillion on fuel subsidy, why can’t they spend it on education?” noted Moghalu.
The ex-CBN deputy governor disclosed that one of his strategies to win the 2023 presidential election would be based on allying with northern youths.
“We will build alliances for 2023, and 60 Arewa youth groups in the North have endorsed me. In 2019, it was believed that the presidency should still remain in the North, but now the case is different. So many things have changed between 2019 and 2023,” Moghalu reasoned. “I am running for the office of the president because of my vision and capacity.”
Regarding zoning the Nigerian presidency, he said, “Nigeria must ensure that no region is left out in the presidency of this country, to ensure national unity. If you must zone then, it should go full circle. If you have Federal Character and quota systems, then it should also apply to the presidency so that no one will be left out.”
In his remarks, ADC’s national chairman, Ralph Okey Nwosu, said if the party took over power, Nigeria would become a superpower nation within 20 years of ruling.
