Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State has described the victory of Bola Tinubu at the February 25 presidential election as a tribute to the resilience of the Nigerian people whose votes have made it all possible.
In a congratulatory statement that he personally signed on Wednesday, the governor said the victory “is a much deserved triumph, reflecting the connection between dedicated effort and reward.”
According to El-Rufai, Tinubu’s success at the polls came amid the most onerous circumstances for the candidates of a ruling party, adding that it “underlines the scale of the hard work put in by the APC and its supporters.”
The governor pointed out that the APC “has a duty to repay this faith by providing purposeful governance that delivers progressive outcomes for all Nigerians.”
“I have no doubt that Asiwaju Bola Tinubu grasps the import of this victory and will lead Nigeria forward march with renewed hope. He knows he has our staunch support in bringing Nigerians together and uniting the country in common endeavours for progress, peace and prosperity,” he added.
El-Rufai who said that he was proud of the contributions of Kaduna State to this monumental triumph that the APC had accomplished, noted that “in this titanic struggle, we sadly lost many of our National Assembly seats.”
The governor, however, noted that as “regrettable as that is, the APC members are still victors.
“The APC members in Kaduna State, our supporters and the entire people of Kaduna State have just partaken in a festival of democracy that has demonstrated our status as people of honour.
“Our region as a whole has shown that we value national unity, that we honour agreements and dutifully discharge the obligations that such entail,” he added.
El-Rufai further said that “every APC member is an integral part of this victorious national party.”
The governor promised that Kaduna APC would build on this momentum to victory in the March 11 governorship and State House of Assembly elections.
“On that day, our people would use the legitimate route democracy offers to redress the setbacks of 25 February by giving an emphatic victory to all APC candidates in Kaduna State.
“We will campaign hard anew on our strong record of governance in the last eight years in which we have put our people first,” he pledged.
El-Rufai appealed to the people of Kaduna State to come out and vote massively on March 11, noting that “many more of our candidates would have won on 25 February if there was better turnout of our supporters.”
According to him, this is no time for political apathy because “the choice Kaduna State faces is monumental, and we should choose wisely just as Nigeria has done.”
(Punch)
