Donald Duke: Poverty, Insecurity Worsening, Nigeria Needs Competent Leadership

Former Cross River State Governor and Peoples Redemption Party presidential candidate, Donald Duke, has warned that Nigeria's worsening poverty and insecurity require competent leadership. Duke argues that the country can no longer afford to experiment with presidential aspirants without rigorous scrutiny of their experience, capacity, track record, and plans for the nation.

He emphasized that Nigeria is in a state of disaster, but can still recover with a change in direction. The economic situation, rising poverty, and insecurity have made competent and purposeful leadership more urgent. Duke acknowledged President Bola Tinubu's political experience but stressed his concern lies with governance, not politics.

He rejected suggestions that his criticism of Tinubu is based on personal superiority, stating he would implement a better governance structure. Duke believes the primary responsibility of government is to create an environment where citizens can become productive, while ensuring the country remains safe and orderly. Investments in education, healthcare, and infrastructure should be measured by their impact on citizens' productivity and welfare.

Duke's experience as governor of Cross River State demonstrated that governments could stimulate economic activity by identifying and developing the comparative advantages of their respective states. He defended the Tinapa project initiated under his administration, stating it was successful when he left office. Duke cautioned the opposition coalition to agree on a common vision for Nigeria before deciding who should lead, emphasizing that simply assembling politicians against the incumbent administration would be wrong and shortchanging Nigerians.