From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Bauchi
The Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Bola Tinubu, has assured President Muhammadu Buhari that he would “Recharge Lake Chad” if elected president.
He gave the assurance during the Presidential flag-off of the Kolmani Integrated Development Project in the North-East, located in both Bauchi and Gombe states.
He further assured thot he would tack hunger and terrorism.
“Your (Buhari) various regrets each time we discuss is the challenge of hunger and terrorism, you talk about Lake Chad. Let me assure you, if I am elected the president I will recharge Lake Chad. You often talk about Mambila and electricity, what a problem we have,” he said.
Tinubu commended President Buhari for being positive about the nation’s issues despite criticism on social media and the main media.
He said: “You are not a backward person who looks back at history of disappointment and failures, you are always forward looking,” he said.
He added that he will continue in Buhari’s stead.
“That is why while we were debating, I insisted that our title for the manifesto will be ‘A Renewed Hope’ not knowing that today will happen and today it is happening, it’s a renewed hope for the entire Nigeria.
“Let me assure you I will continue to hold on to that renewed hope and carry forward where you left the footprints,” the ruling party flag bearer said.
Buhari flagged off the Kolmani Integrated Development Project in the North-East on Tuesday, the first of its kind in the zone.
In his remarks, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, who recalled his relationship with the project, expressed his delight to be associated with the project as Minister having worked with a former Minister of Petroleum Resources when NNDC won the oil prospect lease being flagged off Tuesday.
Also speaking at the event, the Group CEO NNPCL, Mele Kolo Kyari, noted that the search for oil and gas in the frontier basins of Chad, Sokoto, Anambra Platform, Calabar Embarkment, Benue Trough, Dahomey, Bida and the Ultra Deepwater Niger Delta had spanned decades without significant outcomes.
“However, the singular determination of Mr President to ensure optimum exploration and exploitation of our natural resources and Your Excellency’s consequential directives for NNPC Limited to strategize and utilize available human, technological and other material resources to prosecute exploration activities in all Frontier Basins resulted in the discovery of commercial oil and gas deposits in the Kolmani Prospect in April 2019,” Kyari added.