The Presidential candidate of Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) in the forthcoming 2027 general election, Donald Duke has likened opposition parties supporting President Bola Tinubu’s re-election as leprous fingers
Penpushing reports that Duke said this while appearing on a television on Thursday adding that the alignment of opposition parties with Tinubu undermined the prospect of a credible contest.
The former Governor of Cross River State recalling the five political parties that endorsed General Abacha’s transition programme in the 1990s., warned that Nigeria is heading towards disaster as political rivals rally behind Tinubu.
Penpushing further reports that he pointed out that the alignment is like a political manoeuvres during the late military ruler Sani Abacha’s controversial transition to civilian rule, stressing that Nigerians should take the political direction of the country seriously rather than treat the emerging alliances as routine political manoeuvring
“Some of the opposition parties supporting the president. It is reminiscent of what happened in Abacha’s transition. You know, the five leprous fingers? Yes. So you now have four leprous fingers, because one of the fingers has dropped off’, Duke said.
“You should find time because we shouldn’t be glib about where we’re going. I said that where we’re going in this country is, we’re looking at disaster. We are looking at disaster. We’re doing nothing about it. We’re playing politics with ourselves,” he said.
Penpushing also reports that Duke invoking the analogy, suggested that the willingness of opposition parties to support an incumbent president could weaken democratic competition and leave voters without a credible alternative.
The Presidential hopeful said the government should focus on expanding economic production and productivity rather than placing excessive emphasis on revenue collection, arguing that high interest rates were discouraging businesses from borrowing and investing, limiting their capacity to expand and create jobs.
“You can’t grow your economy at 30-something per cent interest rate. It’s not possible. No one would go to a bank and borrow money at such high costs,” he said.He also said inflation is
Penpushing reports that Duke stated that reducing petrol prices would help lower production expenses and ease pressure on households and businesses, as he criticised the government’s economic management, insisting that its focus on revenue generation did not adequately account for the productive capacity of the economy.
“The central bank will tell you it’s because of inflation. What are the inflationary items? Your cost of fuel is horrendous. So that is an inflation. And that’s why it makes it incumbent to try and bring down the price of fuel as low as possible,” he said.
“This tax minister who sells himself coordinating minister of economy, you know, big names kill small dogs, right? He’s looking at revenue, not the totality of the economy’, Duke emphasised .
Penpushing further reports that he argued that Nigeria should be raising a larger share of its gross domestic product through its budget and expanding the tax base by growing economic activity.
“If you say you’re the largest economy in Africa and your GDP is about $400-and-something billion or so, the figures, you should be able to raise about 15 to 20 per cent of your GDP as your budget. We’re still at five per cent. So we’re not even capturing the numbers we should,” he said.
Penpushing also reports that Duke warned that excessive dependence on petroleum-related earnings would perpetuate the country’s economic difficulties rather than promote sustainable development.
“We’re just focusing on petrol. But it’s a double-edged sword, because if you focus on that, you’ll remain poor, as we are,” he said.
Penpushing reports that he said if elected, his immediate priorities if elected president, is to identify energy, healthcare, education, infrastructure and the productivity of Nigerians as key areas requiring urgent attention.
“Everything in Nigeria is almost a state of urgency, but I’ll strengthen, I’ll come back to this energy thing because it’s what is stifling the country, right? I’ll focus on health, I’ll focus on education, of course, infrastructure, but more importantly, I’ll be focusing on the productivity of Nigerians,” he said.
Penpushing further reports that Duke said that the cost of living had become unsustainable for workers, whose earnings were increasingly inadequate to cover basic expenses.
“Nigerians are not productive because the banks are not lending. The cost, look, the average, if you’re a worker, your one salary can’t fill your minimum wage, can’t fill your tank. Those are the things killing Nigerians,” he said.
Penpushing also reports that he said he was not promising immediate salary increase, explaining that a government should first examine the costs eroding workers’ incomes.
“I didn’t say I would increase salaries. Oh, okay. No, I can’t sit down on this chair and say I’m going to increase salaries because there’s so many things you’ve got to look at. What I will strive to do is reduce the cost of those things that grapple at our salaries’, he stated
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