I Will Defeat Atiku As APC Presidential Candidate - Rochas Okorocha Says

Former Imo State governor and All Progressives Congress presidential candidate Rochas Okorocha boasted that if given his party's ticket, he would defeat Peoples Democratic Party candidate Atiku Abubakar. According to him, the APC required a candidate who could garner significant votes in the North in order to win the 2023 presidential election.

According to the lawmaker, he is the only candidate who has received nationwide acceptance.

Okorocha stated during an appearance on a political program on Arise Television that his popularity and goodwill in the northern part of the country, which is considered the PDP candidate's stronghold, gives him an advantage over other APC aspirants.

He said, “The APC has smartly waited until the PDP produced its candidate, now what should preoccupy the mind of the APC is who can defeat the PDP presidential candidate.

“The PDP candidate, Atiku Abubakar, is someone that had contested election with our President and was an APC member and he polled substantial votes, what APC needs is the man that can poll similar votes in the North to be able to defeat him, anything outside this that goes with sentiment will mean failure for us.

“This is what we should know, who is that person among the APC aspirants that can get sufficient votes in the North because that PDP’s only strategy is the Northern votes. We might not have President Buhari on the ballot because most people that won elections on the platform of the APC in previous elections did so because of President Buhari. Now such privilege is no more there, so you have to look for that man that people will look at and vote for and I am that man.

“I am more acceptable in the North than any of the aspirants. I am the darling of the North. I have a cordial relationship with the North. In the North, I saw their children that were not going to school and I provided free education for them. Some people believe that if I am elected President that power is still in the North because of my close relationship with the North. ”

He stated that he will defeat Atiku in his home state of Adamawa, claiming that he has impacted the lives of people in the state of the PDP's candidate.

Okorocha said, “If I run for election, in Adamawa State today, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar will sweat to defeat me because I can show what I did in Adamawa State. I challenge everyone to show what they have done in other parts of the country outside their region.”.