2011: Atiku Most Qualified - Babangida Aliyu

San Francisco, Oct 11, (THEWILL) - Former Vice President and presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar is the most qualified and possesses the best democratic credentials of all the presidential aspirants for the 2011 election, Governor Babangida Aliyu of Niger state, has said.

Speaking at the inaugural Distinguished Public Lecture series of the Sultan Maccido Institute of Peace, Leadership and Development Studies at the University of Abuja today, Aliyu said, "Of all the aspirants seeking to contest the 2011 election as president, Atiku Abubakar is the most qualified."

According him, the former Vice President has contributed greatly to the sustenance of Nigeria’s democracy. "He is the most democratic; he has never been involved in a coup plot and has contributed greatly to the survival of democracy in Nigeria," the governor added.

He said that the 2011 elections will be defining one, as the survival of the nation’s democracy is predicated on it.

"The 2011 should be a determinant factor for development and the election

should be beyond sentiments but issue-based," Aliyu said.

He urged Nigerians to be involved in the process of throwing up a credible leadership by registering as voters and voting for candidates of their choice.