Kennedy Iyere, the governorship candidate for the Accord Party, has officially stepped down from the upcoming 2024 Edo State gubernatorial election.
Iyere made the announcement, citing his desire to focus on national issues and serve Nigeria on a broader scale. His withdrawal, he explained, is motivated by a need to contribute to solving the country’s social and economic challenges, particularly the ongoing food and hunger crisis.
Iyere has been actively involved in tackling the nation’s food security issues, having earlier introduced a multi-billion dollar food program known as the ‘Food4All Initiative.’
This project was presented to President Bola Tinubu and aims to boost food production and create mass employment, especially for youths and women, through the “One-Family-One-Farmer Scheme.”
In his withdrawal statement, Iyere also highlighted internal disputes within his party as a significant factor in his decision. He accused his running mate, Bright Enabulele, of attempting to undermine his candidacy, which led to further tension within the party.
According to Iyere, this internal party conflict, combined with his growing interest in addressing national concerns, made him rethink his candidacy.
Iyere stressed that his decision was not based on personal grievances but on a desire to serve Nigerians more broadly. He urged Edo voters to avoid violence and choose their leaders wisely, while emphasizing the importance of equal power rotation among the state’s three senatorial districts.
He said: “My focus is no longer on the governorship seat but on a higher and bigger portfolio than a Governor. I want to serve Nigerians at large and not just Edo indigenes. I want to help rebuild Nigeria’s lost economic greatness.
“Serving as a Governor will actually place limitations on me. So, when I saw the plots displayed by Enabulele and some leaders of Accord Party at the State Level, then I knew it was time for me to embrace a higher calling, which was to step up my game to the federal level where I am presently hugely contributing my efforts towards national development.
“I am assisting the federal government to devise a road map for the economic inclusion, engagement, self-emancipation and deradicalisation of youths by designing and driving social intervention programmes that aim to mitigate unemployment and enhance youth and women entrepreneurial opportunities for mass self-employment, wealth creation and poverty alleviation.
“These programmes will fully kick-start in the month of October 2024 and Nigeria will be placed yet again on the pathway of rapid economic recovery. Our intervention programmes will enhance opportunities for youth entrepreneurship engagement in multiple sectors, especially agriculture, food and beverage, technology, entertainment, innovation and creativity.
“More than six million youth and women entrepreneurs (as MSME owners and operators) shall be created or produced within the first one year of the official kick-off of this entrepreneurship programme. Nigerian youths and women lack access to the business capital required as entrepreneurs to either start up a new business or operate an existing business. This programme will squarely address that essential need.”
