Lawan speaks on presidential bid, says it is speculative

Ahmed Lawan, President of the senate has stated that reports on if he will contest the presidency in the 2023 general election are “speculative”.

Reports had surfaced over the weekend that the senate president would soon declare his intention to contest the presidency.

Lawan while fielding questions from state house correspondents after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday said his decision on the matter will be in line with divine direction.

“I thought you were going to ask me about what we want to do in 2022. We passed the budget for 2022, a budget for consolidation of what we have been able to achieve in 2020, when we had an implementation of 100 percent,” he said.

“The year 2021 has just finished — another 100 percent implementation of budget — and we’re looking forward to ensuring that the 2022 budget is also implemented by 100 percent.

“If we stabilise our economy, we stabilise our country, then people can contest. But for now, everything is speculative and I believe that God, in His infinite mercy, will show us the way.”

Lawan also spoke on the achievements of the present administration, adding that despite the challenges with the COVID pandemic, the country is on the right path to development.

“Today, we are happy to say that we’re still making progress, but would have done far better if we hadn’t had the COVID interruption,” he said.

“So, I believe that as a nation, we are moving in the right direction and President Muhammadu Buhari is giving us the leadership that we need and all that we need to do is to continue to support our leaders, continue to support our government and it’s in the best interest of everyone.

“Let no politics, let no partisanship, let no sentiments derail any of our programmes and projects because you need to have a Nigeria first if you are running to take over government at whatever level.

“You need to have a country; you need to have a stable country; you need to have a peaceful country in the first place, and if you do that, you can contest, for example.

“But as individuals, we have a date with a history. How much do we give to our nation? How much do we sacrifice for the sake of others in our communities and in our country? That determines a lot how far we can go, because if we decide to be selfish, then I’m sorry, we may not make that kind of progress that we believe can take us to the El dorado.”