Former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, has stressed that he is not in politics for position but as a loyal party man to contribute in building a better Nigeria for the benefit of all Nigerians.

Obi made the clarification while responding to media enquiries while attending the 242nd US Independence ceremony yesterday in Ikoyi, Lagos.

Asked to confirm if it is true that he has been chosen as the vice presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the 2019 elections, Obi threw the question back, asking: “Do you choose the vice presidential candidate before the emergence of the presidential candidate?”

When the reporter replied in the negative, the former governor said: “That means that the answer is capital NO. Nobody has discussed that with me. Let me point out that the position of Vice President is not something which one can vie for; it is the prerogative of the candidate, after due consultations with the party, to choose his running mate.

“I am in politics because I want to help in building a better future for Nigerians, especially for our children – we must bequeath them a better country.”

Continuing, Obi, who was days ago rumoured to have emerged as the running mate of PDP frontrunner Atiku Abubakar, said: “Every Nigerian must be concerned about the daily killing in our country. Every Nigerian must be concerned about the high level of insecurity in our country today. Every Nigerian must be concerned about the 10 million children out of school when they are supposed to be in school – considering that education is the most important investment we can make for our children for their future. Every Nigerian must be concerned about the millions of unemployed people, especially youths in their productive age who are unemployed.

“These are my concerns. As I have always said, I would prefer to be an ordinary person in a great country than to be a great man in a failed country.”

Obi also supported the call by the USA Consul General, Mr. Paul Arkwright for Nigerians to embrace mentoring, saying that the same urge to mentor the young ones was one of the reasons for his school apostolate.

Obi extended his condolences to those who lost their loved ones in recent mass deaths in the country, especially in the Plateau massacre and Thursday evening’s traffic inferno in the Berger area of Lagos. He appealed to government at all levels to rise up to the challenge of securing the life and property of all Nigerians “since the primary duty of government is to secure the lives of the citizens.”

•Photo shows Ex-Governor Peter Obi and the USA Consul General, F John Bray at the 242nd USA Independence celebration in Lagos

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