Nigeria Content Online

All the 624 PDP
delegates from the North-Central zone have endorsed the President
Jonathan/Sambo presidential ticket ahead of party’s Jan.13 primaries.

The delegates made
the endorsement on Tuesday in Lafia at a consultative meeting with the
president and other stakeholders from the zone.

The News Agency of
Nigeria (NAN) reports that motion for the endorsement was moved by
former Minister of Information, Jerry Gana and seconded by former
Governor of Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Adamu. A voice vote to that
effect was called by the Senate President, David Mark.

“Given the fact
that the President is effectively responding to the yearnings and
aspiration of Nigerians, I, Prof. Jerry Gana do hereby move that the
North-Central delegates to the National convention of our great party,
the PDP, hereby unanimously agree and adopt President Goodluck Jonathan
as our choice of presidential candidate of the PDP for the 2011
election,” Mr Gana said. Mr Jonathan, who thanked the governors and
people of the zone for the support so far shown to his administration,
said he will not disappoint Nigerians if given the mandate.

He challenged the
delegates to vote for him in the interest of the zone in the
forthcoming PDP presidential primaries in order to help realise the
dream of the zone and the country.

He promised to
tackle kidnapping in the South-East and all other security challenges
if given the mandate in 2011, stressing that “no economic development
can be achieved without security.”

Asking for more

Earlier, while
presenting the delegates to Presdent Jonathan, the North-Central Zonal
Coordinator of the Jonathan /Sambo campaign organisation, the Benue
State Governor, Gabriel Suswam assured him that no delegate from the
zone will vote any other presidential aspirant during the primaries.

He, however,
appealed to the President to make the exploration of the various
mineral resources in the area, especially coal, his focus when
re-elected in 2011 as the resource had remained untapped for years.

Mr Suswan also
appealed for the dualisation of the Abuja – Lafia- Enugu Federal
Highway to ease transportation and enhance the agricultural potential
of the zone.

Aliyu Doma of
Nasarawa State commended the President for the landmark achievements
recorded, particularly, in the areas of power generation, economic
transformation, and infrastructural development.

He also praised the president’s commitment to equity, justice and promotion of unity and peaceful coexistence in the country.