A response is appropriate to the inaccurate editorial published in yesterday’s Daily Trust newspaper.
The authors are correct in stating that Nigeria, like every other nation in the globe, is going through a difficult time.
But any and all claims that the Buhari government is not departing Nigeria in a better state than we left it are pure fantasy, particularly in regards to the nation’s crucial pillars of the economy, security, and corruption.
The data speaks for itself. In terms of security, Boko Haram controlled an area in Nigeria that was the size of Belgium as recently as 2015.
They no longer control any significant region in Nigeria.
In an airstrike in March that involved American and British intelligence, our military killed the ISWAP leader, demonstrating the renewed confidence that our friends have in our administration that was not present under prior administrations.
In addition, our administration is the first in Nigerian history to put our National Livestock Transformation Plan into action in order to resolve the herder-farmer conflicts.
We have already noticed a significant decrease in disputes where ranches have been built as part of that project.
Therefore, claiming that nothing has changed or that things are growing worse is false.
Even within of the Daily Trust, things have gotten better. Seven years is a long time, and its new managers might not be aware that in 2015, The Daily Trust, along with many other critical organizations, required extensive security and barriers surrounding their buildings to prevent terrorist attacks.
They have all of it gone now, which is a definite sign that the threats, as they were at the time, have diminished.
Regarding corruption, this administration has seen hundreds of millions of dollars in stolen funds returned from abroad and used as social and welfare funds distributed directly to the most vulnerable during the COVID-19 pandemic and the provision of long-delayed infrastructure—roads, bridges, rail, and power—to benefit the most disadvantaged.
This is a direct result of the steps taken by the Buhari government, such as our whistleblowing policy, which gives Nigerians the power and confidence to disclose corruption without fear.
Additionally, it illustrates the renewed faith that our administration’s initiatives have helped our international allies have in Nigeria.
Years ago, those same partners declined to give stolen money to prior governments because they knew it would just be taken again.
More importantly, the Buhari administration has put in place mechanisms to prevent corruption from occurring, such as bolstering the Auditor General’s office, improving the anti-corruption agencies’ capabilities by signing into law numerous legislations and Executive Orders, implementing the Treasury Single Account, TSA, whistleblower, public expenditure management, and forensic accounting management systems, and more.
In terms of the economy, our administration’s unprecedented and extensive infrastructure development has put the nation on track for equitable and sustainable economic growth, while our policies to increase domestic food and energy production will be crucial for navigating the rising cost of living crisis.
With the COVID-19 lockdown, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, increasing freight costs, and extreme weather occurrences driving up inflation rates around the globe, leaders are taking a battering, and we anticipate that ours won’t be exempt either.
But justice requires that we give credit where credit is due. In order to grow what we eat and eat what we grow, President Buhari implemented a food policy, which has prevented the threat to global food security from becoming more and more urgent.
The country now feels secure enough to ban rice imports, saving USD 5 million in foreign exchange each day.
This is because of the President’s initiative.
Many states, including Kebbi, the Federal Capital Territory, Niger, Gombe, and astonishingly, Ekiti State, feature rice pyramids.
In order to increase production, the nation has seen the construction of 1,000 small-scale rice mills, 1,000 integrated rice mills, and 57 newly constructed or renovated fertilizer plants. In terms of sugar production, Nasarawa State and Niger are currently rivals, and Kaduna State is preparing to put its steel plant into operation.
These are only available in a thriving economy.
One of the major errors made by President Buhari’s detractors is believing their own propaganda and preconceived notions about the type of politics they support.
The President believes that improving the lives of those at the bottom of the social scale is one of the biggest investments a meaningful government can make.
More than 20 million people are receiving conditional cash transfers, school meals, and other social investment, or SIP, programs under this administration.
We already have enough problems to deal with in this time of economic difficulty on the entire planet. Furthermore, it serves no one to deny accomplishments where they are present.
Instead, let’s concentrate on our accomplishments so that we may build on them going forward to meet the new obstacles that keep coming along.
Finally, it should be noted that harsh and unfair attacks are to be expected during times like these, when elections are imminent, especially against a leader like President Buhari who has a strong reputation in which the All Progressives Congress, often known as the APC, has substantially invested.