The Young Progressives Party (YPP) presidential candidate, Arc. Dr. Peter Agada, has called on political candidates to present Nigerians with measurable and time-bound plans for addressing the country’s challenges.

Agada made the call during an interactive session with journalists in Abuja, where he said candidates should provide clear details on how their proposed policies would be implemented if elected.

He said governance problems were partly linked to elected officials spending considerable time in office identifying problems and setting up committees rather than implementing programmes with defined objectives and timelines.

“For decades, political campaigns in Nigeria have been treated like poetry contests,” Agada said.

He argued that candidates promising job creation, improved healthcare and other interventions should explain how such promises would be achieved and the timeframe for delivering them.

According to him, candidates seeking executive office should be able to provide specific figures, timelines and implementation plans for major policies contained in their manifestos.

Agada also called for better coordination among government agencies in the planning and execution of public projects.

He said poor coordination could result in infrastructure projects being implemented without the supporting facilities and services required to make them functional.

Using healthcare infrastructure as an example, he said the construction of a health facility should be planned alongside supporting infrastructure such as access roads, water supply and electricity.

The YPP candidate also called for greater public access to information on government projects, including their budgets, timelines and implementation progress.

He said stronger public monitoring of projects could help address cases of abandoned projects, waste and delays in the execution of government programmes.

Agada urged presidential candidates and other political contenders to subject their manifestos to public scrutiny and provide evidence of how their proposed policies would be implemented.

“Let us stop selling hope without a tape measure. Show Nigerians the map, show them the figures, show them the timeline, and let the facts speak,” he said.