Former Senate President, Senator David Mark, on Friday emphasised the importance of the 2019 polls to the survival and progress of the Nigeria nation.
Mark addressed newsmen after a closed-door meeting with former President, Olusegun Obasanjo in Abeokuta, Ogun capital.
He said he was in Abeokuta to consult with Obasanjo over his (Mark) presidential ambition.
Mark said that Nigerians must get it right in the choice of leaders at all levels to move the nation to an enviable height.
He described the 2019 polls as the “first major polls that the Peoples Democratic Party would be contesting as an opposition party”.
The former Senate President, a presidential aspirant on the platform of the PDP, therefore considered the elections as a test of the party’s strength, popularity and how well it had fared since the last general polls in 2015.
Mark, who cautioned other PDP presidential aspirants against unguarded utterances, dismissed rumours that he had stepped down for another aspirant.
He said: “Those who are afraid of contest have no business in the race.
“I came into the race well prepared after due consultation with various groups
“The positive outcome of my consultations across the country and the overwhelming endorsements encouraged me to vie.”
Mark urged aspirants across all political parties to consider national interest above their personal interest as they prepare for the polls.
He said: “We must priotise the unity and peace of Nigeria, because both must be in place before we can tackle other challenges like the economy, insecurity and foreign policy.
“I will ensure that they are both strengthened if given an opportunity to rule as president.”
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