The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar has revealed what he did for Nigerians as Vice President under Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration.
Atiku said as Vice President from 1999 to 2007, he chaired the national economic council that gave Nigeria her highest and most consistent GDP growth of over 6 percent per annum.
The Waziri of Adamawa also disclosed that Nigeria paid off its entire foreign debt despite the fact that crude oil prices at that time were much lower than they were today, under the dynamic leadership of President Obasanjo.
The former Vice President stated this while launching his policy document tagged ‘AtikuPlan’ on Monday via a Twitter live broadcast.
He said: “When I was Vice President from 1999 to 2007, I chaired the national economic council that gave Nigeria her highest and most consistent GDP growth of over 6 percent per annum.
“Despite the fact that crude oil prices at that time were much lower than they were today, under the dynamic leadership of President Obasanjo, Nigeria paid off its entire foreign debt.
“We also introduced the GSM revolution that saw Nigeria go from 100,000 phone- lines to over 100 million today.
“We were able to achieve these, and much more, because we had a plan called the national economic empowerment and development strategy.’’
Abubakar added that ‘Atikuplan’ would help create jobs, saying without jobs, Nigerians could not afford to feed their families and their children live in poverty.
“Without jobs, there is crime, drug use and insecurity. Without jobs, where is the hope for a better life and a better future?
“Today we will begin the process of sharing our policies that form my plan to create jobs, restructure the polity, and get Nigeria working again.
“If Nigeria worked for me, I owe it as my duty to make sure that Nigeria also works for you, your family and your friends.
“It is time to get Nigeria working again, and these are the plans and policies I have for achieving that.”