… Charges governors-elect to unite across party lines
President Muhammadu Buhari has rated his administration high, saying that in eight years his government has built a foundation for peaceful, prosperous and a more united Nigeria.
This was disclosed at the 2023 induction of Governors-elect organised by the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) in Abuja on Monday.
The President was represented at the event by the Chief of Staff, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, where he told the Governors that the task ahead of them is to deliver on their campaign promises to the people, and charged them to leverage on one another’s strength.
“We have made progress since we took office in 2023, the road has been bumpy, the challenges of climate, but I am proud to state that as we leave office in about two weeks we have built a good foundation of a peaceful prosperous and a more united Nigeria.
“We may not have done everything but we focused on a number of areas, particularly infrastructure, agriculture, strengthening and empowering the capacity of our armed forces in spite of the difficult fiscal conditions, we remain committed to our policy,” Buhari said.
“These key areas that we have strategically targeted. Our focus in infrastructure was to provide access to markets and to improve the overall supply chain. This singular commitment to infrastructure is designed to improve the means of livelihood of our people. I am happy that we have succeeded in investing the nation’s wealth in every state of the federation for developmental purposes, and the path for sustainable development has been set,” he added.
While charging the Governors-elect on the work ahead of them, the President said, “Election is now over. It is time for us to deliver promises made during the campaign. Democracy is not an event and it is not an end, it is a revolutionary process that starts with a journey of self-actualisation. We are expected to review and improve the critical elements in order to ensure that we have an inclusive democratic practice that gives faith to the process.
“We must therefore be patient and use the appropriate channel to seek redress. I am speaking as a veteran of the process, I contested election for the presidency four times, I only succeeded in the fourth attempt. In the previous attempts I went all the way to the Supreme Court in order to allow the judicial process to take its course.
He added, “On May 29th this year, you will be called upon to steer the affairs of your states at least in the next four years and on this day you become only responsible for the state as an enterprise.
Buhari further stated, “You as the governor and state executive will inherit all the assets as well as the liabilities. Your assumption of office is a constitutional process that will be done with utmost dedication, as is imposed on you by those who elected you to office.
“Any public officer that fails to meet up with the expectation of the people or deliver on his campaign promises will be voted out in the next election, which is what democracy is about. Deliver or get ready to be shown the way out.
“I enjoin the Forum to promote ideals that will address the challenges of democracy and governance in the country today. The role of the sub-national is critical in our socio-economic development as a nation. The opportunity that people give you is a privilege to have instant thought on the needs and challenges, and yours is to provide creative as well as judicious means by addressing myriad of challenges that confront them.
“As a returning or incoming chief executive, you also have the cognizance of the comparative advantages inherent in each of the states, and how you can form partnership with one another and leverage in the various strengths, experiences and recognising that there is no one side that has all the solutions.
“I want you to use this opportunity to unite across party divides in order to put the country first.
“One of the major contributions that the Nigeria Governors Forum has made is that it is an important Forum to promote policies that cut across political parties, geo-political zones while addressing major issues.
‘Nigeria deserves peace, progress and security, a country where they have access to quality education and social services, therefore your ability to champion these values will significantly impact the atmosphere where the delivery of social growth and services will be provided efficiently and harmoniously,” Buhari said.
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