October 23, (THEWILL) – On Saturday, the Oba of Benin, Oba Ewuare II, wished the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections, Atiku Abubakar, well in his quest to become the president of Nigeria.
The Oba made the wish when he received Atiku and his delegates at his palace in Benin during a courtesy call on him.
The Oba urged Atiku to consider the state as his home and not otherwise, noting that it is a home away from home for him.
The monarch said he has followed his (Atiku’s) assurances to Nigerians since the political campaigns started.
He prayed that God and the ancestors should grant the PDP candidate his heart desires.
“I have been following your assurances to Nigerians since you began your presidential political campaigns.
“And we pray that God and our ancestors should bring your heart desires to fruition. We have you in our prayers and I want to wish you well”, the Oba of Benin said.
Earlier, the PDP presidential candidate said he was at the palace to seek the Oba’s blessings as the presidential campaigns continue.
He said it would be out of place for him to have come to the state without visiting the palace for his blessings.
Atiku said the Oba of Benin has a very significant role to play as one of the front-line paramount rulers, who have constantly ensured that there is peace in the country.
He thanked the Oba for receiving him in his palace.
Meanwhile, Atiku has pledged to decentralise policing to pave the way for local police if elected president in the 2023 general elections.
Speaking at the PDP presidential campaign rally in the state, Atiku said as president, his administration will address the security challenges in the country, no matter what it will take.
The PDP candidate, who expressed appreciation to the people of the state for sticking with the opposition party, also promised to provide infrastructural development in the state if voted in as president.
He said: “Today, we are before you to reiterate our commitment, our five-programme commitment to the people of this country. One, we have promised to reunify this country. What do we mean by that? We mean we are going to give each and every part of this country a sense of belonging. You will not be excluded from anything. That is why we are being referred to as unifiers of our great nation.
“Two, we promise to restore security. Whatever it is going to take us to do it, we will restore security in this country; so that you can travel day and night. So that you can go to your farms. So that you can go anywhere secured.
“We will put more policemen on the streets. We will equip them; we will fortify them and since we have promised to devolve more powers to the states and local governments, you can also have your own local police. We shall make sure your local police don’t harass you.
“Three, we will send back all our eligible children to school. They must go to school; every child must go to school. If you remember, during the PDP years, we established compulsory primary school education from primary to secondary school and we are tasking Nigerians to educate these children.
“Again, we promise infrastructural development in the country, particularly in Edo, linking Edo to the South and linking Edo to the North. We will make sure all these roads are rehabilitated and are motorable. What is most important in a large country like Nigeria is to make sure that we have an efficient rail system.
