Mazi Samuel Iheanyichukwu Ohuabunwa is a Nigerian pharmacist, politician and business executive. He is the founder and former CEO of Neimeth Pharmaceutical. He is the convener of New Nigeria Project and aspiring to become Nigeria’s president in the forthcoming 2023 presidential election.
In this interview with Trend Reporters, the politician speaks on why he is interested in Nigeria’s number one job, highlighted some challenges confronting the nation and give insight on how he intends to address them if elected as president.
Excerpt:
Good day sir. We would like to know what inform your decision to embark on the New Nigeria Project?
It is something that has been long in coming. I have been involved all my life in economic advocacy through leadership of MAN, Nigeria Economic Summit Group, NECA and all the private sector opportunities. I have been involved in designing vision 2020. I have a heart for Nigeria to become globally competitive and to become a country at peace with itself.
However, things have not work out over many years, so I got to the point where I come to the conclusion that rather than writing and speaking and hoping that others would hear you and do what you want them to do, I have the motivation to come out and do it.
So, I have been motivated to come and throw my heart into the ring and join forces with other well meaning Nigerians to take Nigeria from a third world to a first world, and build a country that works for all.
Nigeria can be described today as a nation of angry people beginning with the Biafra group, to the EndSARS group. Today, we have the Yoruba group and the middle belt. And a lot of people are calling that Nigeria should be restructured, that the constitution should be thrown away and a new one drafted. And then there are those who are saying that they want new states, so that they can meet up with other regions that have more states. If you become the president of Nigeria, do you think you can handle all these problems?
Actually those are parts of what we are coming to solve. By the grace of God we are coming to resolve Nigeria. All these things that stressed us, all these moving round in a circle would end, because resolving Nigeria issue is not as complicated as some people are making it to be.
If we have any problem today about any issue and I get all of us to sit down and I said we are not leaving this room today until we have solved our problems; are we likely to solve it?. But if I sit in my room and I am pontificating my solution, saying this is the solution and that is the solution, some people would resent it. Some people would accept it while others would not and there would be further agitation. But if I called the agitators; their leaders and their men and asked them do we all want to live together as citizens of the same country? And if they say yes, that would be wonderful.
I believe that many citizens of Nigeria want to live as a country. From my research, majority still want to live together because of the benefits of size, the benefits of the large market, the benefits of the ability to negotiate on a geo-political zone. The smaller you are the easier it is to be overriding by bigger countries.
So many want to live together, but they don’t want to live in a relationship that is master servant. A relationship that is slave master, a relationship that is becoming violent and destructive.
What they want is a relationship that is mutually reinforcing, mutually beneficial, that is what they want. And the solution is a very simple one. Bring everybody together. Please Biafra, IPOB what is your problem? Niger Delta what is your problem? And together we would sort out how we can solve each person’s problems without imperiling the others.
Some pretends a lot in this country more than the people who own the country. Every Nigerian is a single Nigerian and we all love this country, I believe and we all want it well. But what we are looking for is who can bring us together and give us a free hand to determine.
If I become president, I will call people together to determine Nigeria. There would be no go area; they can go to any area.
Who owns the country is not me, is they. And I believe they would mean well to be able to decide what is best.
When you keep telling people there is no go area, it is like you are imposing your will on them. Let them decide what they want.
So, I believe that resolving Nigeria’s multi-headed problems is not as complicated as it is, as long as we are willing to act in good faith.
Okay sir, one last question. You happened to be an Igbo man. And one of the geneses of the agitation for a changed Nigeria today happened to come from another Igbo man, who happened to come from your state, Nnamdi Kanu.
Sir, with what is going on now and the agitations for Biafra; Nnamdi Kanu has been saying he does not want anything less than Biafra. Do you really think that Nigerians would trust you who is Nnamdi Kanu’s kinsman with the president of this country? Believing that you would not call Nnamdi Kanu to divide the country?
There was a time the Niger Delta people were agitating for resource control; thereafter Jonathan became the president. Meanwhile, some groups in the north were saying they want Islamic republic, they want caliphate, an Islamic person as president.
So, what one group or the other is campaigning should not be what you use to judge anybody else.
People are free to campaign. Haven’t you heard Kanu abuse every Igbo man? Which Igbo man hasn’t he not abuse?
He has abused Ohaneze, he has abused everybody. How can you use what he is saying to hold all of us to ransom? Of course, Nnamdi Kanu has the right to say what he has to say, you have right to say what you have to say, everybody has right. And sometimes people talk because of the way they feel; because of the way the thing is pinching them. The moment you are confronted with a problem everybody has the way they respond to it.
I want to tell you that the day Nigeria begins to treat all Nigerians equally, begins to treat all Nigerians fairly; there is no bias, there is no marginalization, there is no misjudgment, there is no gang up, there is no conspiracy against one group, all those agitations would stop.
