By Cross Udo, Abuja
The Governor of Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Sule, yesterday said that despite the gale of defection, Nigeria will not become a one-party state.
Sule also said that people are defecting from the opposition political parties to the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, APC, because of President Bola Tinubu’s reforms, which he said have started yielding positive results.
Speaking to State House correspondents after meeting with President Tinubu behind closed doors at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the governor said that every politician would always like to identify with the ruling party.
He said he visited the President, the APC’s Leader, to discuss state matters.
He said, “I have two significant issues to discuss with him: one about my state and two about my party, especially relating to my state. So, those were the two major issues we discussed. In Nasarawa State, we are trying to do a lot.
“Just yesterday, we received special recognition in agriculture and renewed energy; we have mini-grids nationwide. So, Nasarawa now has the highest number of mini-grids in the country because of the effort in agriculture and mining. So, those were the kind of things we discussed with Mr. President.”
Fielding a question about his impression of the array of opposition defections to the ruling party, he said that Tinubu’s performance was attracting opposition elements to the ruling party.
“It’s a reflection of our party’s performance and Mr. President’s performance. Mr. President is carrying out a lot of reforms. We saw the first reforms in the unification of the effects.
“We saw another one regarding the removal of the subsidy. We have seen one now in the power sector. One of the ones that interests me is skill acquisition and agriculture.
“So, when you are beginning to see a lot of these efforts, a lot of these reforms, nearly every reform will come with its ups and downs. You know, but the advantages of some of these reforms far outweigh the disadvantages. So, as a result, people who are happy with what they see are returning to the party.
“So, the party is doing well, and for that reason, the President is also doing well. And that is the reason why people are joining.”
Responding to the insinuation that the country may be heading towards a one-party state, he said:
“I have answered this twice or three times now. I don’t believe, by the slightest of imagination, that we are going to be a one-party state. If you look at it, no matter how successful we are, even America, for instance, that have the Republican Party and the Democratic Party, you still have the Green Party and many other political parties you don’t hear about. So, the same thing with Nigeria.
“No matter what happens, some people will be on the other side. We don’t even want Nigeria to be a one-party state. We want to be the dominant party.
“We just want to be the winning party. We want to be the party. If we can win 90 per cent of the votes, okay, that’s it. The other parties can win 10 per cent of the votes. So, it’s not about- and I’m not being sarcastic. I’m just trying to be serious with you.
“There is no way we can be a one-party state. But every party wants to be the dominant party. Every party wants to win elections. Every party wants to be able to give back to society and to give back to the people. And I think that’s what our party is doing.”
Giving an update on lithium battery production in his state after its launch, Governor Sule said: “Well, Nigerians should know this. We commissioned the first one that you are talking about last year by the Senate President on behalf of Mr President, and that’s about three million metric tons per annum.
“In the next two months, you are coming to commission another one that will be three times the size of that one in Nasarawa State. And then, about three other ones are coming up by the end of the year.
“So, we are beginning to see more and more development of lithium, tantalite, and so many other minerals in the state.
“So these are the things that I talk to you about when I say reforms about things happening. And when I mentioned that we have the highest number of mini-grids in the country, people didn’t even know why.
“One of the reasons is that so many of these small-scale companies are operating, you know, agriculture, mining, and they all need power.
“So what they do is require a mini-grid in their location so that it can power their operations. And we are lucky in Nasarawa State; it has been very peaceful. You know, so that’s what many investors are looking forward to. They want to ensure that their place is peaceful and that they can move.”
