Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), says his administration will return Nigerian youths to farming and small businesses if elected in 2027.
Obi spoke on Saturday in Kaduna at a political meeting organised by the NDC, where he and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, unveiled their plans for job creation.
He said his government would be inclusive, anchored on unity and investment.
“If you elect us to serve, we will only borrow money for investment.
“We’re no longer going to borrow money for consumption. We want to move Nigeria from consumption to production. By that, we will create jobs,” Obi said.
He compared Nigeria’s situation with Indonesia, noting that despite Indonesia’s larger population, it is performing better because its youths are employed.
“Our population is about 230 million. Indonesia is 280 million. But they are doing better than us because their youths are employed.
“We will help the youths to find something to do. We will make sure they go back to farm. We will make sure they go back to small businesses. We will support them and tell them the bad effects of drugs,” he said.
The former Anambra governor lamented the high rate of drug abuse in Nigeria, saying current laws against drug importation are weak.
“Nigeria does not have adequate laws for those who are importing drugs,” he said.
Obi said if elected, his administration would impose life imprisonment on drug dealers.
“If I become president, drugs will fetch life sentence. If you deal in drugs that will kill our youths and everything, you are going to face life imprisonment. We cannot take it,” he added.
He noted that while global drug prevalence is about 5 percent, Nigeria’s stands at 14 percent, linking it to youth unemployment.
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