Khadija Okunnu-Lamidi: 'I no dey tink of anytin oda dan victory'

Tori of di Marketing professional wey declare her intention to run for di office of di president of Nigeria for di 2023 election still dey make headlines across di kontri.

Before di tori begin spread, Khadijah Okunnu-Lamidi na name wey many be no go don hear before, but di 38-year-old na daughter of former Minister of Works, Femi Okunnu.

For interview wit BBC Pidgin, she reveal her passion for Nigeria, her advocate for a better Nigeria wey go work for everybody and di reason she decide to come out now.

"I be business woman, mother and don work for civil service too, my business dey do very well, I be di CEO of Slice Media. We dey build di brand without corner-corner or mago-mago, all dis ones dey help in leadership.

"I don dey inside politics for at least 15-20 years dey learn, But many pipo dey come out before dem ready na im be di problem we get, but I don learn di work. I don dey watch di politicians as dem dey do and e no satisfy me, na time wey I suppose get up defend and stand for my pipo." She tok.

Okunnu-Lamidi wey look back at di way tins dey before say her decision to come out now na to ansa di call of duty.

"Nigeria don dey spoil as I dey look am, wen I dey small pipo wey I go school with na mix of different classes of pipo, I go school with children of drivers for our school, cleaners becos dat time dem fit collect bursary go school. Dat time Nigeria na one, I fit say I enjoy kontri wey be one, but di way we dey look am now, di difference for rich and poor, di conversation between one class and anoda no dey mix again and dat na big problem. Me I don come as pesin wey go bring everybody Back togeda, dat na my mission," She tok.

Okunnu-Lamidi also tok about wen she decide to enta politics proper and contest.

"I tink di time wen I decide properly na around afta End Sars, na im I just look am say, dat time, I dey ask many of di young prospects, God bless Sound Sultan, we dey tok and plan say make we pick one of our youths make dem run, but many pipo tink say na set up, dem say make we remain leaderless, but you no fit enta politics without leader e no go work na dat time wey I dey try tok to dem na im I tink say dis tin I dey tok if I really mean am I suppose step out, na me go carry dat risk if I really wan see a beta working Nigeria.

On if she dey serious to see di race to di end, di CEO of Slice Media say:

"I sure say you don see say di way I enta am no be joke, I don plan am, I don know how I go move, dis tin na all our brain we go use take do am, everybody go dey involved, I dey determined. I don understand all di corner-corner wey fit hapun for politics. For you to present yourself, you get to dey ready for all di tins wey go comot for di mata. I no dey see anytin oda dan victory, di vision is clear"

APC or PDP?

Ontop mata of party wey she go run under Okunnu-Lamidi never sure yet.

"I no dey like tok about party becos e no dey bring solutions," she tok. I never see party since we don dey grow wey go bring solution to beta everybody for di society, na just dia own sef, and many pipo wen you look am most of di pipo we get dey all di parties, dem dey PDP, APC, all di parties, dem just dey cross carpet, nobody get one party, di youth now, na time to choose, to choose right.

How her family respond

Okunnu-Lamidi wey be di daughter of former Minister of Works Femi Okunnu say at first her papa bin no too down with her intention.

"E be like say dem don know say I go do dis kain tin one day, but everyone dey supportive, I dey very pleased and very happy, e no easy at first even my papa believe say dis politics dem go tear me into pieces and stuff but im don know say politics don dirty and e no be easy tin for me and e don bring me up well, my family, dem know say dem don teach me well and show me how to behave and lead my life so if dem see me as I dey do dis dem no dey fear." She tok.

Okunnu-Lamidi also clear di air about her relationship with APC nationale leader, Bola Ahmed, Tinubu wey also just delacre say e get am for mind to contest too for 2023.

"We dey related somehow." She tok. "Na national leader for di APC, e don contribute to di national politics and politics in general, I get big respect for am but e no change say Nigeria want sometin and dem dey look for young pipo wit ginger and dem dey look for solution, way out of poverty, 24 hours electricity, good healthcare, good roads, e no take from dat one, na dat one I wan come do. Dat na my goal and aim no be to just come make noise.

Nigeria dey ready for her first woman president?

Nigeria never get female president before, although dis no e di first time woman dey show interest for di top jon for Aso Rock.

"Di whole world, innovation and change na im dey drive global progress dis days, everywhere in di world we dey see change and new things, you no fit continue to dey do tins di same and expect different results.

"Nigeria na 60%women, 40% men, wen you look am I fell like I be good representation of Nigerians and we be 70% youths, na us dey dey run tins now. We need to do tins different, dem don do am in di last 30 years, make we try smetin different n aim we come." Okunnu-Lamidi tok.

On her plans for security and economy if she win, di young presidential aspirant say she get some ideas of how to solve di challenge.

"You know any meeting wey I dey get now na solutions we dey find. We no even dey... Campaign na one tin, but most of everything na im we dey find for governance . Wit security, one be say you no fit secure your outer border without securing your locality na local na im we go infuse to bring up the national security.

We go first start with the localities ... you know we use all forms of local monitoring to infuse , those be di pipo wey go give you information, those be di pipo wey go watch out for dia neighbours.. you know na dat plan we dey take use look security problem so we no just dey look at di outer border."

For di economy, she say di first tin to do na bring back s sense of identity to pipo.

"First of all, we must bring a sense of identity, a sense of belonging back to Nigeria. Nigeria is a great nation, we are missing it and our economy dey go down because we always tink foreign or sometin wey dem take out of us dey beta. One tin wey I wan do first is bring back brand Nigeria, bring back the green white green make am attractive and bring us back to di world as a power wey pipo go wan to associate with. In dat way, we go dey able to negotiate, we go dey able to control wetin our economy look like." She tok.