(Esther Okereke. Photo by Daily Post)
The National Rescue Movement’s presidential hopeful, Esther Okereke, says she has a plan to fix Nigeria’s power shortage, deal with insecurity, stop corruption and tackle economic problems if voters pick her in 2027.
Okereke, who’s an actress and does humanitarian work, says her drive to run for president comes from years spent helping vulnerable Nigerians widows, orphans and people with disabilities.
She pushed back against the idea that she’s just another celebrity jumping into politics, saying her grassroots work has shown her exactly what ordinary Nigerians are dealing with.
She runs charity foundations for widows, orphans and disabled people completely on her own, with no government help.
That hands-on experience, she argues, makes her a grassroots candidate, not a showbiz one.
Her plan is built around something she calls the ESTHER Agenda a “people’s manifesto” covering six areas: economic growth, power, education, security, social and sustainable development, technology, transparency, housing and health.
On power, she wants to end the electricity crisis using renewable energy and localized power systems.
She’s aiming for 25,000 megawatts in her first 100 days.
Once there’s light, she says, you can see security problems and fix them properly.
She blames corruption and self-interest for why the power sector stays broken and would replace officials who don’t hit their targets.
To deal with Nigeria’s debt and money problems, she plans to shut down redundant parastatals, fake agencies and government organizations that don’t do anything.
Money saved would go back into the economy.
For insecurity, she wants more funding for police and community policing.
Local people who know their neighborhoods, if trained and armed, can protect their communities better than outsiders can, she says.
This could happen in six months with the right resources.
Corruption, she stressed, destroys everything.
It’s the real obstacle to fixing security and the economy, so stopping it comes first.
She also wants Nigeria to invest in keeping its skilled workers at home rather than watching them leave for better opportunities elsewhere.
She expects her strongest support from ordinary Nigerians in grassroots communities.
Though she’s never worked in government, she’s run businesses in hospitality, real estate, construction and farming across different sectors.
What matters most, she said, is the willpower to make tough choices for citizens.
