From Desmond Mgboh, Kano and Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
Atiku/Okowa Presidential Campaign Organisation has boasted that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate would win the poll at first ballot.
The campaign organisation, in a statement by its spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan, said the election results would shock pollsters. He said Atiku enjoys the support of majority of Nigerians.
He noted that it is clear that the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, lacked the political muscle to stop the former vice president.
“Atiku enjoys the solidarity and support of greater majority of Nigerians who are not captured in the indices relied upon by many of the pollsters in their projections on the 2023 presidential election.
“It is incontrovertible that Atiku will win the majority of lawful votes across the country and garner the constitutionally required 25 per cent of votes in more than 24 states of the federation.
“It is evident that the traditional voters of the PDP across the polling units, wards, local governments, states and the six geo-political zones are not distracted in their steadfastness to rescue Nigeria from the misrule of APC by voting en-masse for Atiku.
“Also, this army of traditional voters are unrelenting in mobilising the non-partisan voters as well as the undecided across the country to vote for the PDP presidential candidate.
“Furthermore, it is clear that the candidate of the rival APC, Tinubu, lacks the political muscle and national acceptability to stop Atiku at the first ballot.
“Our campaign is, therefore, unfazed knowing that majority of Nigerians across the nation are in consensus to elect Atiku as the next president, particularly, given his proven capacity, competence, political will and national acceptability to provide leadership at this critical time of our national history,” he said.
Meanwhile, Vice Presidential candidate of the APC, Kashim Shettima, has dismissed the projections of a national newspaper, which picked Atiku as the likely candidate to win.
Shettima, who spoke in Kano, yesterday, insisted that Tinubu would dust his rivals.
He accused the national newspaper and its editorial board of uncontrollable bias, regretting that the trouble with deliberate bias is that it cannot be erased by sound education.
“The national newspapers or any other organisation are entitled to their opinions. But elections are not conducted on twitter, on Facebook or on Instagram but in the nooks and crannies of rural Nigeria and in urban centres.
“We are indifferent to the permutations of those political charlatans who know next to nothing about the political geography of Nigeria.
“We are not bothered, we are not perturbed. We have a date with destiny. We are going to win this election by the grace of God,” he said.
While in the state, the vice presidential candidate inspected a number of projects by the Ganduje administration and visited some elders, notably Tanko Yakasai, Musa Gwadade and business mogul, Aminu Dantata.
During the reception of his guests, Dantata shocked his audience when he declared that he no longer enjoyed life, adding that he hoped to depart this world in good faith. He said many of his age mates were no longer alive, noting that he could hardly call out 10 of his mates and friends across the states who were still alive.
“Honestly, as I am right now, I am just waiting for my time. I no longer enjoy life anymore. I hope I depart this world in good faith.
“I hope I did not offend anyone in life, If I offended anyone, I hope they find it in their hearts to forgive me, if anybody has offended me, I have forgiven them.
“I am now the only one left in my family living with grandchildren,” he said.
