Ezekwesili, Durotoye, Moghalu reel out economic plans

Three presidential candidates on Saturday clashed on the economy in the televised debate held at the Trans-corp Hilton Hotel, Abuja.
They include Oby Ezekwesili of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN), Fela Durotoye of the Alliance for New Nigeria (ANN) and Kingsley Moghalu of the Young Progressives Party (YPP).
Asked how he intended to fix the economy, Moghalu said the country currently lacked an economic philosophy.
He stated that the country must first decide whether it is practicing a capitalist or socialist ideology.
“So, my approach to the Nigerian economy is first to focus on reforming the educational system; ensure that our young people have the skills that can make them competitive in the 21st century and the skills that can give them jobs or help them to set up their own jobs.
“Then we will give them access to finance which my government will do through the creation of N1 trillion venture capital fund which will give equity capital, not loans that will have to be repaid.
“This is because loans carry interests in Nigeria that is too high or we may not have the collateral to be able to access them.
“So, we will invest in new businesses that will create millions of jobs within the first four years.
“Therefore, the approach that we will have is skill, capital and literacy, that is what will fix the Nigerian economy and take it into industrialisation,’’ Moghalu said.
On his plan for economic diversification especially through building the non-oil sector, Durotoye identified agriculture, housing and infrastructure as the most important sectors that should be focused on.
He said his government would ensure that it fixed the power sector, roads and provide housing for Nigerians, adding that his plan is to provide 30 million jobs.
He said the commodity sector needed to be strengthened so that farmers could have their produce promptly cleared.
On her part, Ezekwesili said her plan is to lift at least 80 million Nigerians out of poverty through improvement in the productivity of majority of Nigerians who “earn less than N700 a day’’.
To do this, she said her government would evolve policies and programmes targeting people engaged in the services sector which constitutes about 60 per cent of the country’s GDP.
Some candidates in the forthcoming presidential poll on Saturday, made public their strategies to tackle insecurity in the country.
The candidates disclosed their plans at a debate organised by the Nigerian Election Debate Group in collaboration with the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) in Abuja.
The candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) Prof. Kingsly Moghalu said he would abolish corruption in the military if elected as president.
Moghalu said his administration would ensure high level of intelligence gathering among the locals while collaborating with neighbouring countries to tackle terrorism.
He identified bad economy as the major factor feeding insecurity in the country saying if elected, his administration would ensure the economy booms.
Moghalu said that additional policemen would be recruited, trained and equipped to create a 21st century police force that would tackle kidnapping and other crimes.
On his part, the candidate of the Alliance for New Nigeria (ANN) Mr Fela Durotoye said if elected, he would ensure security agencies are strengthened to do their job well.
Durotoye said under his administration, the leadership of security agencies would not be based on sentiment but competence and professionalism.
He said men and officers of various security agencies would be properly motivated with modern and standard equipment, vehicles among others.
Durotoye said his administration would ensure that officers and men of the military would be properly taken care of while they are alive and their families would be catered for when they pass away.
He said under his watch, security would be in the hands of the citizens as he plans to run participatory government with a new ideology.
Also, Ezekwesili said she would send a sharp message that “there is a new sheriff in town.”
According to her, those who engage in savagery know that there is no consistency for their actions as the judiciary has not convicted anyone.
Ezekwesili said if elected, she would ensure a SWART team for quick response and technology would be deployed to gather intelligence.
She said her administration would ensure that intelligent officers would be identified and given leadership roles.