Buhari beats chest, says he is fulfilling promises made in 2015

FILE PHOTO

President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday affirmed that his administration had stayed committed to the promised change he offered Nigerians in the build-up to the 2015 general elections that ushered him to power as the promises were being fulfilled.

The president singled out the housing sector as one aspect of the nation’s infrastructural development, where his administration had delivered satisfactorily the 2015 promised change mitral of his campaign and administration’s signature.

President Buhari made the disclosure while inaugurating a 68-unit housing scheme by the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, under the National Housing Programme (NHP), Phase One, along Benin-Auchi Road in Benin, Edo State.

Buhari, who was represented by the Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, reiterated: “When our party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), sought your mandate to form the government in 2015, one of the things that we promised was change. This housing estate is an example of the fulfilment of that promise of change.

“This is a good example of some of the developmental possibilities that inter-governmental collaboration can produce, and I am optimistic that with the provision of more land, the Federal Government certainly can do more. Of course, the progressive ideals of our government seek to achieve one primary objective, which is to improve the human condition.

“We certainly cannot meet every one of those Nigerians in person, but our economic policies and investment in infrastructures such as the National Housing Programme and others will reach and positively impact many of them. Our desire and commitment towards improving the human condition and our message of change, have another facet beyond job creation.”

The representative of President Muhammadu Buhari, Dr Osagie Ehanire, the Minister of Health (middle); Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki (left); and the representative of the Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, Mr Solomon Labafilo, who is the Director, Public Buildings and Housing Development, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, at the inauguration of the housing estate in Benin City, Edo State on April 14, 2022.

The President also stated that the inauguration provided an opportunity to fulfil the promise of providing houses for the Super Eagles, for winning the 1994 African Cup of Nations, with Wilfred Agbonavbare and the late Thompson Oliha, who was represented by his wife, Iris, benefiting, with three-bedroom flat allocated to each of them.

He noted that in the states where the houses had been completed, his administration had issued maintenance contracts to small businesses, in order to ensure that the estates were maintained and kept in good repair, thereby creating jobs for Nigerians.

President Buhari commended the government and people of Edo State for their cooperation towards the successful completion and inauguration of the housing project, which he said would help to improve and promote the welfare of the people of the state.

Governor Godwin Obaseki, in his remarks, reiterated that many Nigerians were not living in a proper shelter, in view of limited resources and economic challenges.

Obaseki noted that collaboration was key, in order to meet Nigeria’s housing needs, while urging other stakeholders to support the initiative.

The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, SAN, in his address, revealed that in 34 states of Nigeria, the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Works and Housing, had delivered similar housing projects, with the support of the state governors, who provided the land.

Fashola, who was represented by the Director, Public Buildings and Housing Development, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, Solomon Labafilo, disclosed that the project was the outcome of a national survey conducted by the ministry.

“As we head towards the end of President Buhari’s tenure of office, I am happy to also say that we have entered a season of completion of many projects such as this, as they begin to bear fruits.

“We have offered all the housing units to members of the general public in a non-discriminatory way of opening the national housing portal, to ensure that those interested are not inhibited by any artificial obstacles and allocations will be made on the basis of those who apply and pay, on a first come, first-served basis,” Fashola said.

The minister of works and housing also stated that the ministry’s survey equally revealed a prevalent need for bungalows in the North of Nigeria and flats in the South of the country.

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