Atiku: My administration’ll give more powers to state, local govts

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, says his agenda for restructuring is to ensure that the government becomes more efficient.

Atiku said he would encourage the National Assembly and State Houses of Assembly to come up with constitutional amendments that will give more powers and resources to state and local governments.

The former Vice President said this at the 24th Lecture Series of the Lagos Business School in Lagos on Tuesday.

Atiku, who was a keynote speaker in a panel Question and Answer session, said he believes in small government, adding that the private sector should be given the opportunity to play more roles in the economy.

“As Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria between 1999 to 2007, I headed the economic team that implemented fundamental economic reforms, including the design and implementation of a private sector revival strategy.

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“We focused on macro-economic stability and transforming critical areas such as banking, insurance, oil and gas, telecommunications, pension and the civil service.

“We created novel institutions for laying the foundation for good governance and accountability such as the Bureau of Public Procurement, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and SERVICOM.

“With many years in the private sector, I have a deep understanding of our economy and its challenges,” he said.

The PDP presidential flag-bearer further stated that the five-point agenda of his policy proposal is a document that contains the solution to the many challenges besetting the country.

“I am an active operator in the private sector. I am a manufacturer, service provider and an educationist. So I have first-hand experience of what the private sector needs and I also have experience in governance.

“The PDP economic reforms recorded significant achievements between 1999 and 2015. Now, you have seen the impact of the people that took over from us. Nigerians can pick between the two.

“If you give the PDP another opportunity, we will perform even better than we did before,” Atiku said.

The Star