Why I Contested 2019 Presidential Election ― Moghalu

Former Presidential candidate of Young Progressives Party, YPP, Professor Kingsley Moghalu, has revealed real reasons he contested the 2019 presidential election.

Moghalu stated as a guest during the 6th Goddy Jedenma public lecture in Lagos on Tuesday.

While reacting to a charge by the guest speaker, Professor PLO Lumumba, on the need for Nigerians and the rest of Africans not to wait till they win an election before making their contributions to develop Africa.

Moghalu maintained: “We have brilliant people in this country in any sphere of endeavour whether in Business, Academia, finance, engineering, yet we are where we are.

“The question is why? Therefore I say to you Prof. Lumumba we can succeed in our small boxes and our different spheres, but our success is not because we have a good government because we don’t. We succeed in spite of the weak government that we have in this country.

“This was why I left my own comfort zone. I was not a politician, I never planned to be one. I was a professor in the United States at the Flechette School of Law University.

“One day, I was teaching and I was looking at these young men and women; I said to myself in 10-15 years the director of the CIA is probably here, Secretary of State is here and some big industrialists are here. Why am I developing somebody else’s country? I said I will return to my own country and I will contest for the office of the land.

“We know the difficulties. The difficulties begin with the people themselves. If great people like Professor Lumumba comes out to contest they will not vote for you.

“They would vote not for their solution, but for their problem. The root of the issue in this country is with the psych of the People. It has chattered, battered and the people have been made to feel sub-human and accept those who are their overlords and worship them.

“So you come with a good summation, they will tell you you are very brilliant but you are blowing grammar.

“So my point is in this country, we will not address our developmental challenges except we address our leadership problem.

“It’s not good enough that you can perfect your society in different ways. Dangote have not changed the Nigerian economy. Dangote economy is doing well and so many other people.

“But the economy of Nigeria, GDP per capita, the poverty range will never change except we have a leadership with an economic mindset, capacity and a mindset of transformation.

“It is our business as Nigerians to reorientate ourselves to understand that this is our priority and that we must make it happen”.

Lumumba bows to Moghalu’s summation

Agreeing with the Ex-presidential candidate, Lumumba said: “In elections, Africans are more likely to vote in Alibaba and his 40 thieves into office than to put good men in office.

“All I am saying is wherever you are making a contribution to the development of Africa because if you wait to become a president to contribute, you may wait till God knows when.”