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•Says whoever is against Nigeria’s unity will be roundly defeated 

•Charges former Lagos governor, other APC candidates not to disappoint electorate if elected 

•Tinubu pledges to end recurring ASUU strike

Deji Elumoye and Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign rally moved to Damaturu, the Yobe State capital yesterday, with the Presidential Campaign Council Chairman, President Muhammadu Buhari, calling on eligible voters in the state and the North-eastern part of the country to ensure that his party’s presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, was elected in the forthcoming general election.

Buhari assured Nigerians that Tinubu would continue to build on his legacy to rebuild Nigeria if elected.

The president said a vote for Tinubu and his running mate, Kashim Shettima, would guarantee the sustenance of progress made in the security, economy and education sectors of the country.

Buhari, according to a statement issued by his Media Adviser, Femi Adesina, vowed that following the victory against terrorists in the region, the APC-led government was more than ever before energised to defeat whoever threatens the unity of Nigeria.

The president, who addressed the teeming crowd in Hausa language, recalled how Boko Haram inflicted damage on the people, their property and the economy, before their decimation by Nigeria Armed Forces and security agencies.

Emphasising the need for education in countering the despicable ideology of Boko Haram, the President told parents and guardians in Yobe:

‘‘Make sure you send your children to school and make them understand that whatever you have in this world can be taken away from you except the knowledge you have in your head.

‘‘I was an orphan; I did not know my father. I spent nine years in a boarding school and because of education, I was enlisted into the Nigerian Army.

‘‘I want you to strengthen your faith, try your best to uphold the children and family God has entrusted to you. Do not betray that trust’’

Buhari challenged all the APC flagbearers in the forthcoming general elections, to ensure good governance when elected and not to disappoint the electorate.

He declared that the governing party had done its best in the last eight years at the federal level and would continue to ensure the progress, prosperity and stability of Nigeria.

According to Buhari, the former Lagos governor has the capacity to continue the work of rebuilding Nigeria he started over seven years ago.

He said, “I accompany Asiwaju here to tell you to vote for him so that he can continue with my legacy of rebuilding Nigeria.”

Also, in a separate statement issued yesterday by his own Media Office, Tinubu said he would use the newly commissioned Yobe Cargo airport to boost agriculture in the state.

He commended Buhari for the airport project and other laudable projects across the country, describing it as wise investments.

Tinubu said: “The cargo airport Mr. President commissioned yesterday will be greatly needed when our agenda for greater production of agricultural and industrial exports begins to take off.

“It is a wise investment made with courage and foresight.  It will be needed to transport Yobe’s excellent sesame, hibiscus and gum Arabic to the rest of the world.”

Dissecting his plan for the agriculture sector, Tinubu stressed that harnessing the country’s agricultural endowment was more than an economic desire, but a matter of national security.

He stated: “We need to further guarantee food security to better ensure social stability and lay the groundwork for even more economic progress.

“We will establish agricultural hubs and irrigation and water catchment systems to assist farmers throughout the nation. Yields and harvests will increase. More importantly, we will encourage value-added agro-processing businesses that will foster greater economic activity creating well paid jobs and bringing better products to local markets and to your family’s dinner table.

“We will invest in the individual small farmers. You will earn a good and guaranteed income through the establishment of Commodity Exchange boards that will ensure an acceptable price for the crops you labor so hard to grow.”

On the investment and tourism opportunities available in the state, Tinubu promised to work with the state government to invest in the exploration of the precious mineral resources found in Yobe State

“Your limestone, trona and gypsum will create jobs and earn money for the state.  Yobe’s tourism potentials of the beautiful landscapes, sand dunes, oases and bird sanctuaries will be highlighted,” he added.

He also promised to create jobs for the people of the state, while also improving their access to quality education.

The former Lagos State governor praised the people of the state for being steadfast to the progressives’ family since the return to democracy in 1999, not allowing the opposition any chance. He sought their support to continue this trend.

He said: “Yobe has always been a progressive state. You have never allowed the locusts to land here and feast on what does not belong to them.  Instead, you have been loyal to the progressive cause of building a state and nation both of which have the sole mission of serving their people.

“You have supported this noble cause and the APC, our nation’s best and only true hope for good governance. Now, we are here to ask you to remain true to this proud tradition. Continue to support us progressives.”

Tinubu also commended Buhari for ensuring the people of the state can now move freely without fear, promising to build on this.

According to him, ‘‘This government is a government of progress, integrity and honesty”.

Tinubu also promised to make the perennial ASUU strike history, adding that undergraduates would not need to spend extra years in the university beyond the standard duration of course of study.

Also speaking, the Senate President, Dr. Ahmad Lawan, promised that APC would win every contestable seat in Yobe State, because Buhari has done wonderfully well in the seven and half years he has been in office.

He accused PDP of destroying Nigeria during its 16 years in power, saying ‘‘they should be ashamed of themselves and have no right to go around Nigeria seeking for votes.’’

‘‘We are all Buharists and that Buharism- integrity and love for country-will continue when you (President Buhari) hand over to Asiwaju,’’ Lawan said at the presidential campaign rally attended by all the APC governors from the region, the National Chairman of the party, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, the Vice Presidential Candidate, Senator Shettima as well as Plateau State Governor and Director General of the Presidential Campaign Council, Simon Lalong, among others.