APC unveils programmes, endorses Ngige as candidate for Anambra guber poll

All Progressives Party, declared Wednesday, that a large part of its agenda will focus on the Nigerian youth with particular attention to education, job creation, entrepreneurship skills, and vocational training.

National Chairman of the party, Chief Bisi Akande disclosed this at a press conference addressed by the leaders of the party.

Chief Bisi Akande said, “It is common knowledge that Nigeria’s current population is now constituted in such a manner that if not carefully handled would, pose the biggest challenge that this country has ever confronted. According to many reliable reports, nearly two thirds of the over 160 million citizens of Nigeria are youth, meaning; people below the age of 35 years.

“Unfortunately, the process of governance in Nigeria, for all practical purposes, remains impervious to the aspirations of this category of Nigerians. Consequently, no priority is assigned to education, job creation, entrepreneurship skills, and vocational training that would have turned our youth into truly productive citizens. We in the APC see engagement with the youth on the above as a strategic imperative.”

From left: Interim National Chairman of APC, Chief Bisi Akande, Senator Chris Ngige, Senator Annie Okonkwo and Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, during the endorsement of Chris Ngige as APC governorship candidate for Anambra State governorship election.

He further stated that APC would also pay attention to the question of gender in-balance in governance and in the development processes in general. According to him: “The female members of our society constitute about half our country’s population. Yet women issues have been largely consigned to the back burners of governance. For the APC, the specific aspirations of women constitute a major ideological platform. Our party would not resort to the usual tokenism and sloganeering where the issue of women aspirations are concerned, but through this ideological platform transform itself into a party of true gender balance.”

Akande declared that the purpose of the party’s meeting which held earlier in the day was to sound out its members on the immediate areas of responsibility of the Interim Executive Committee, IEC, adding that the responsibility of the IEC was limited to mobilisation of “our teeming adherents and supporters for membership registration and conduct of congresses that will lead to producing a leadership that will be able to lead the party into 2015 general elections”.

He said: Added to these are countless incidents of religious, ethnic, political and civil unrests leading to the loss of millions of innocent lives. Trapped in a vicious cycle of political crises, social upheavals and economic under-development, Nigeria has become, not only one of the most unstable countries in the world, it is also, regrettably, one of the poorest despite its huge human and material resource endowments. Confronting these issues in a single minded manner is the raison de’tre for the formation of the APC.”

Akande further said that he remained confident that with the support and commitment of the party’s members, success was assured in APC’s efforts to deliver better governance to Nigerians

Meanwhile, former Governor of Anambra State Senator Chris Ngige is set to pick the ticket of the newly registered APC in next November’s governorship polls in the state.

This was disclosed by Imo State Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha when he announced that Ngige’s arch rival for the party’s ticket, Senator Annie Okonkwo had stepped down for the former governor.