In his last Independence Day’s broadcast on Saturday morning, President Muhammadu Buhari spoke of his efforts to create a better Nigeria, noting the hardship that citizens are still going through and letting them know that he shares in their pains.
“I share the pains Nigerians are going through and I assure you that your resilience and patience would not be in vain as this administration continues to reposition as well as strengthen the security agencies to enable them to deal with all forms of security challenges,” he said.
The President however said that he had largely succeeded in fulfilling the electoral promises he made to Nigerians including improving the economy, tackling corruption, insecurity and taking 100 million Nigerians out of poverty.
He said: “I then pledged to Improve the economy, tackle corruption and fight insecurity and this was further strengthened by my commitment to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years as the central plank of my second term in 2019.
“To the glory of God and His Grace as well as the commitment and passion displayed by many Nigerian supporters, we have made appreciable progress in these areas but not yet at our destination.
“Mindful of the task before us, we took some time in settling down and we re-positioned the Economy by providing strategic interventions in core areas at both the federal and sub-national levels.
“One of the areas where we have made significant progress is in the eradication of deeply entrenched corruption that permeates all facets of our national development.
“We strengthened the institutions for tackling corruption and also cultivated international support, which aided the repatriation of huge sums of money illegally kept outside the country.
“The increasing number of prosecutions and convictions, with associated refunds of large sums of money is still ongoing. Furthermore, we would continue to block opportunities that encourage corrupt practices.
“In order to address insecurity, we worked methodically in reducing Insurgency in the North-East, militancy in the Niger Delta, ethnic and religious tensions in some sections of Nigeria along with other problems threatening our country.
“Our efforts in re-setting the economy manifested in Nigeria exiting two economic recessions by the very practical and realistic monetary and fiscal measures to ensure effective public financial management.
“In addition, the effective implementation of the Treasury Single Account and cutting down on the cost of governance also facilitated early exits from recessions.
“Fellow Nigerians, this administration removed several decades uncertainty for potential Investors in the oil & gas sector with the passage of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021.
“This landmark legislation created opportunities for foreign investments in addition to improving transparency in the management of the sector.
“Our administration has given the desired priority to the agricultural sector through a series of incentives to micro, small and medium scale enterprises that resulted in creating millions of jobs.
“Leading this initiative, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s intervention in a number of areas as well as the Anchor Borrowers programme had created the required leverages for Nigerians towards self-sufficiency in food and the necessary attraction for farming as a business.
“The growing contribution of non-oil exports, especially in agriculture, information and communication technology as well as the performing arts to our national economy will enhance our foreign exchange earning capacity.
“We are confronting current economic challenges such as debt burden, growing inflation, living standards and increasing unemployment accentuated by our growing youthful population. These problems are globally induced and we would continue to ensure that their negative effects are addressed in our policies.
“This administration will continue to ensure that our fiscal policies are supported by a robust and contemporary monetary policy that recognises our peculiarities in the midst of the growing global economic difficulties.
“This is evidenced by the recent Monetary Policy Committee decision to maintain all parameters, especially interest rates and marginally increased the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) from 14% to 15.5% and the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) from 27.5% to 32.5%.
“It is projected that this would further insulate our economy from over exposure to uncertainties at the international market by restraining growth in core inflation.”
Buhari lamented that as the administration continues to de-escalate the security challenges that have confronted it from inception, “newer forms alien to our country began to manifest especially in the areas of kidnappings, molestations/killings of innocent citizens, banditry, all of which are being addressed by our security forces.
“At the inception of this administration in 2015, I provided the funding requirements of the security agencies which was also improved in my second tenure in 2019 to enable them to surmount security challenges. We will continue on this path until our efforts yield the desired results,” he added.
The president also addressed the lingering strike by members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), regretting the disruption caused to tertiary institutions.
He urged them to return to classed as he assured that government will deal with the contending issues within available resources.
The President stated: “I must confess that I am very pained by the recurring disruption to our tertiary education system and I am using this Independence Day celebration to re-iterate my call for the striking Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to return to the classroom while assuring them to deal with their contending issues within the limits of the scarce resources available.
“This administration has made appreciable progress in redressing these issues that have been lingering for over eleven years.
“The Federal Government will continue to mobilize resources both internationally and nationally towards funding education to ensure that our citizens are well educated and skilled in various vocations in view of the fact that education is a leading determinant of economic growth and employment generation.
President Buhari noted that reforms in the public sector are already yielding results especially in the delivery of services, urging the general public to demand for citizen-centred services from the relevant authorities.
He further said that on the international front, government has continued to take advantage of its bilateral and multilateral platforms to explore cooperation with friendly countries and partners whenever these areas of cooperation are to the advantage of Nigeria.
According to him, Nigeria has in the past few years, witnessed and overcome a good number of challenges that would ordinarily have destroyed the nation, saying that he was called to serve and has succeeded in building a new nation.
He said: “However, the indefatigable spirit of the Nigerian people has ensured that we overcome our challenges.
“It is in this spirit that I call on all of us to individually and collectively bring to the fore in dealing with all our development issues.”
“I was called to serve, along with my team, I saw an opportunity to create a better Nigeria which we have done with the support of Nigerians. Almighty God and the good people of Nigeria supported us in laying a solid foundation for the Nigeria of our dreams.”
