Major General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd). |
By Ismaila Chafe
President Muhammadu Buhari has enjoined Nigerians to be tolerant, law abiding and peace loving as the nation enters a decade of “prosperity and promise for Nigeria and for Africa’’.
President Muhammadu Buhari has enjoined Nigerians to be tolerant, law abiding and peace loving as the nation enters a decade of “prosperity and promise for Nigeria and for Africa’’.
“This is a new year and the beginning of a new
decade – the Nigerian Decade of prosperity and promise for Nigeria and for
Africa,’’ the president said in a letter to Nigerians to mark the beginning of
2020.
The letter was released by the President’s Special
Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, in Abuja on Wednesday.
The Nigerian leader attributed the successes
recorded by his administration to the support of Nigerians.
“This is a joint initiative. Where our policies have
worked best, it has been because of the support of ordinary Nigerians in their
millions, numbers that even the most powerful of special interests cannot defy.
I thank you for your support.
“Transition by its very nature carries with it
change and some uncertainty along the way,’’ he added.
According to him, his administration’s policies are
working and the results will continue to show themselves more clearly by the
day.
He said: “Nigeria is the most tremendous, can-do
market, offering extraordinary opportunities and returns. Investors can look
forward with confidence not only to an increasing momentum of change but also
to specific incentives, including our new visa-on-arrival policy.’’
On the ongoing crusade against corruption in the
country, the president reiterated the determination of his administration to
fight all forms of corrupt practices to a standstill
“They can also be certain of our unshakeable
commitment to tackle corruption.
“As we create an environment that allows initiative,
enterprise and hard work to thrive, it is more important than ever to call out
those who find the rule of law an inconvenience, or independent regulation an
irritation.
“We are doing our part here in Nigeria. We will continue
to press our partners abroad to help with the supply side of corruption and
have received some encouragement.
“We expect more funds stolen in the past to be
returned to us and they will be ploughed back into development with all due
transparency,’’ he said.
2020: Buhari writes Nigerians on
new decade
My
Dear Compatriots,
NIGERIA’S
DECADE
Today
marks a new decade. It is a time of hope, optimism and fresh possibilities. We
look forward as a nation to the 2020s as the opportunity to build on the
foundations we have laid together on security, diversification of our economy
and taking on the curse of corruption. These are the pledges on which I have
been twice elected President and remain the framework for a stable, sustainable
and more prosperous future.
Elections
are the cornerstone of our democracy. I salute the commitment of the millions
who voted in peace last February and of those leaders who contested for office
vigorously but fairly, submitting to the authority of the electorate, the
Independent National Electoral Commission and judicial process. I understand
very well the frustrations our system has in the past triggered. I will be
standing down in 2023 and will not be available in any future elections. But I
am determined to help strengthen the electoral process both in Nigeria and
across the region, where several ECOWAS members go to the polls this year.
As
Commander-in-Chief, my primary concern is the security of the nation and the
safety of our citizens. When I assumed office in May 2015 my first task was to
rally our neighbours so that we could confront Boko Haram on a coordinated regional
basis. Chaos is not a neighbour any of us hope for.
We
have been fighting on several fronts: violent extremists, cultists and
organised criminal networks. It has not been easy. But as we are winning the
war, we also look to the challenge of winning the peace, the reconstruction of
lives, communities and markets. The North East Development Commission will work
with local and international stakeholders to help create a new beginning for
the North East.
The
Federal Government will continue to work with State Governors, neighbouring
states and our international partners to tackle the root causes of violent
extremism and the networks that help finance and organise terror. Our
security forces will receive the best training and modern weaponry, and in turn
will be held to the highest standards of professionalism, and respect for human
rights. We will use all the human and emerging technological resources
available to tackle kidnapping, banditry and armed robbery.
The
new Ministry of Police Affairs increased recruitment of officers and the
security reforms being introduced will build on what we are already delivering.
We will work tirelessly at home and with our allies in support of our policies
to protect the security of life and property. Our actions at all times will be
governed by the rule of law. At the same time, we shall look always to engage
with all well-meaning leaders and citizens of goodwill to promote dialogue,
partnership and understanding.
We
need a democratic government that can guarantee peace and security to realise
the full potential of our ingenious, entrepreneurial and hard-working people.
Our policies are designed to promote genuine, balanced growth that delivers
jobs and rewards industry. Our new Economic Advisory Council brings together respected
and independent thinkers to advise me on a strategy that champions inclusive
and balanced growth, and above all fight poverty and safeguard national
economic interests.
As
we have sat down to celebrate with friends and family over this holiday season,
for the first time in a generation our food plates have not all been filled
with imports of products we know can easily be produced here at home. The
revolution in agriculture is already a reality in all corners of the country.
New agreements with Morocco, Russia and others will help us access on
attractive terms the inputs we need to accelerate the transformation in farming
that is taking place.
A
good example of commitment to this inclusive growth is the signing of the
African Continental Free Trade Area and the creation of the National Action
Committee to oversee its implementation and ensure the necessary safeguards are
in place to allow us to fully capitalise on regional and continental markets.
The
joint land border security exercise currently taking place is meant to
safeguard Nigeria’s economy and security. No one can doubt that we have been
good neighbours and good citizens. We have been the helpers and shock-absorbers
of the sub-region but we cannot allow our well-planned economic regeneration plans
to be sabotaged. As soon as we are satisfied that the safeguards are adequate,
normal cross-border movements will be resumed.
Already,
we are making key infrastructure investments to enhance our ease of doing
business. On transportation, we are making significant progress on key roads
such as the Second Niger Bridge, Lagos – Ibadan Expressway and the Abuja – Kano
highway. 2020 will also see tangible progress on the Lagos to Kano Rail line.
Through Executive Order 007, we are also using alternative funding programmes
in collaboration with private sector partners to fix strategic roads such as
the Apapa-Oworonshoki Express way. Abuja and Port Harcourt have new
international airport terminals, as will Kano and Lagos in 2020. When
completed, all these projects will positively impact business operations in the
country. These projects are not small and do not come without some
temporary disruption; we are doing now what should have been done a long time
ago. I thank you for your patience and look forward to the dividends that we
and future generations will long enjoy.
Power
has been a problem for a generation. We know we need to pick up the pace of
progress. We have solutions to help separate parts of the value chain to work
better together. In the past few months, we have engaged extensively with
stakeholders to develop a series of comprehensive solutions to improve the
reliability and availability of electricity across the country. These solutions
include ensuring fiscal sustainability for the sector, increasing both
government and private sector investments in the power transmission and
distribution segments, improving payment transparency through the deployment of
smart meters and ensuring regulatory actions maximise service delivery.
We
have in place a new deal with Siemens, supported by the German government after
German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited us in Abuja, to invest in new capacity
for generation, transmission and distribution. These projects will be under
close scrutiny and transparency – there will be no more extravagant claims that
end only in waste, theft and mismanagement.
The
next 12 months will witness the gradual implementation of these actions, after
which Nigerians can expect to see significant improvement in electricity
service supply reliability and delivery. Separately, we have plans to increase
domestic gas consumption. In the first quarter of 2020, we will commence work
on the AKK gas pipeline, OB3 Gas pipeline and the expansion of the Escravos –
Lagos Pipeline.
While
we look to create new opportunities in agriculture, manufacturing and other
long neglected sectors, in 2020 we will also realise increased value from oil
and gas, delivering a more competitive, attractive and profitable industry,
operating on commercial principles and free from political interference. Just
last week, we were able to approve a fair framework for the USD10 billion
expansion of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas, which will increase exports by 35
percent, restore our position as a world leader in the sector and create
thousands of jobs. The Amendment of the Deep Offshore Act in October signalled
our intention to create a modern, forward-looking industry in Nigeria. I am
confident that in 2020 we will be able to present a radical programme of reform
for oil and gas that will excite investors, improve governance and strengthen
protections for host communities and the environment.
We
can expect the pace of change in technology only to accelerate in the decade
ahead. Coupled with our young and vibrant population, this offers huge
opportunities if we are able to harness the most productive trends and tame
some of the wilder elements. This is a delicate balance with which many
countries are struggling. We are seeking an informed and mature debate that
reflects our rights and responsibilities as citizens in shaping the boundaries
of how best to allow technology to benefit Nigeria.
During
my Democracy Day speech on June 12, 2019, I promised to lay the enduring
foundations for taking a hundred million Nigerians out of mass poverty over the
next 10 years. Today I restate that commitment. We shall continue reforms in
education, health care and water sanitation. I have met international partners
such as GAVI, the vaccine alliance, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
who support our social welfare programmes. I will continue to work with State
and Local Governments to make sure that these partnerships deliver as they
should. Workers will have a living wage and pensioners will be looked after. We
are steadily clearing pensions and benefits arrears neglected for so long.
The
new Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social
Development will consolidate and build on the social intervention schemes and
will enhance the checks and balances necessary for this set of programmes to
succeed for the long term.
I
am able to report that the journey has already begun with the passage and
signing into law of the 2020 Appropriation Act. As the new decade dawns, we are
ready to hit the ground running. Let me pay tribute to the Ninth National
Assembly who worked uncommonly long hours to make sure that the 2020 budget
scrutiny is both thorough and timely. The close harmony between the Executive
and Legislature is a sharp contrast to what we have experienced in the recent
past, when the Senate kept the previous budget for 7 months without good reason
just to score cheap political points thereby disrupting the budgetary processes
and overall economic development plans.
Our
policies are working and the results will continue to show themselves more
clearly by the day. Nigeria is the most tremendous, can-do market, offering
extraordinary opportunities and returns. Investors can look forward with
confidence not only to an increasing momentum of change but also to specific
incentives, including our new visa-on-arrival policy.
They
can also be certain of our unshakeable commitment to tackle corruption. As we
create an environment that allows initiative, enterprise and hard work to
thrive, it is more important than ever to call out those who find the rule of
law an inconvenience, or independent regulation an irritation. We are doing our
part here in Nigeria. We will continue to press our partners abroad to help
with the supply side of corruption and have received some encouragement. We
expect more funds stolen in the past to be returned to us and they will be
ploughed back into development with all due transparency.
This
is a joint initiative. Where our policies have worked best, it has been because
of the support of ordinary Nigerians in their millions, numbers that even the
most powerful of special interests cannot defy. I thank you for your support.
Transition by its very nature carries with it change and some uncertainty along
the way. I encourage you to be tolerant, law abiding and peace loving. This is
a new year and the beginning of a new decade – the Nigerian Decade of
prosperity and promise for Nigeria and for Africa.
To
recapitulate, some of the projects Nigerians should expect to come upstream
from 2020 include:
- 47 road
projects scheduled for completion in 2020/21, including roads leading to
ports;
- Major
bridges including substantial work on the Second Niger Bridge;
- Completion
of 13 housing estates under the National Housing Project Plan;
- Lagos, Kano,
Maiduguri and Enugu international airports to be commissioned in 2020;
- Launching of
an agricultural rural mechanisation scheme that will cover 700 local
governments over a period of three years;
- Launching of
the Livestock Development Project Grazing Model in Gombe State where
200,000 hectares of land has been identified;
- Training of
50,000 workers to complement the country’s 7,000 extension workers;
- Commissioning
of the Lagos – Ibadan and Itakpe – Warri rail lines in the first quarter;
- Commencement
of the Ibadan – Abuja and Kano – Kaduna rail lines also in the first
quarter;
- Further
liberalisation of the power sector to allow businesses to generate and
sell power;
- Commencement
of the construction of the Mambilla Power project by the first half of
2020; and
- Commencement
of the construction of the AKK gas pipeline, OB3 gas pipeline and the
expansion of the Escravos – Lagos pipeline in the first quarter of 2020.
Thank
you very much!
President
Muhammadu Buhari
State
House,
Abuja.
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