The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) has cancelled its scheduled presidential debate for the 2023 polls.

The debate was scheduled to hold next week in Abuja as part of the National Economic Summit (NES#28).

Organisers of the summit shelved the debate because of what they called “unfavorable climate”.

In place of the debate, NESG said it will organise a town hall meeting for presidential candidates of the political parties at a later date.

NESG chairman, Asue Ighodalo confirmed the change of plan while responding to questions from journalists after a scheduled pre-summit briefing.

Ighodalo said there must be a minimum level of issues that presidential aspirants must sign on to.

He said the NESG had “hoped there was going to be a debate, but the prevailing climate wasn’t comfortable for it anymore.

“However we are planning a town hall arrangement. It’s fundamental each aspirant tells Nigerians how he intends to tackle each sector of the economy. The public can then take them up copiously sector by sector. There will be no aspirant that will say I don’t know. I promise this,” he said.

Speaking more on what this year’s summit will cover, Ighodalo projected that “in five years, Nigeria can become a leading industrializing and reforming nation in Africa that focuses on building its State capacity and capabilities”.

Within that period, Nigeria, he said “can break free from decades-long political, policy, legislative and regulatory binding constraints.” (The Nation)

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