Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo, has expressed confidence that President Bola Tinubu will secure a second term in office, urging progressive political groups across the country to unite behind the President.
Soludo made the remarks while addressing Tinubu and members of the All Progressives Alliance Africa at the inauguration of APC presidential campaign council in Abuja on Wednesday, where he declared support for the President’s economic reform agenda and vision for national development.
The governor said the principles of national unity, security and shared prosperity informed his support for Tinubu.
“We in Africa believe in the unity of Nigeria. We believe in the security of Nigeria. We believe in the shared prosperity of Nigeria,” Soludo said.
He added that these principles were among the reasons his political group was supporting the President, whom he described as representing the three pillars needed for Nigeria’s present and future.
Soludo also called for greater unity among progressive political forces, arguing that the country needed a collective commitment to its development goals.
“I have called before that all progressives in Nigeria must unite. This is an opportunity that we must not miss.
“We must come together for this new Nigeria that we dream about,” he said.
The governor expressed confidence in Tinubu’s chances of securing another term, suggesting that a second term would provide an opportunity to accelerate the administration’s reform programme.
“In the second term, I want to believe, it’s not if you get second term. We are talking about when you get second term,” Soludo said.
He described the administration’s economic reform direction as difficult but necessary, urging the President to sustain the course.
“The path you are going, the path that you have chosen, that you have had the courage to take, is difficult, but it is necessary,” he said.
Soludo further described the next phase of the reform agenda as an opportunity to advance what he called “pragmatic progressiveness”.
“It is the acceleration path towards what I call pragmatic progressiveness that we must entrench in Nigeria,” he said.
He argued that progressive political groups should work together to support the country’s transformation, adding that the current period presented an opportunity to consolidate the administration’s policies.
Reaffirming his support for Tinubu, the Anambra governor said, “So I say to you, Mr. President, I’m with you.”
Soludo’s remarks focused on political cooperation, the continuation of economic reforms and the need for progressive groups to unite behind a common development agenda.