My dear Nigerians,
October 1st remains a special date for all Nigerians as this
marks the day when we attained one of the most precious of human desires —
freedom.
Over the years the country has gone through trials and
tribulations, but October 1st is always a day for celebrations.
It is a day for thanks giving, reflection and re-dedication.
It is also a day for remembrance. We should remind ourselves
of the recent journey from 1999 – 2015, when our country happily returned to
democratic rule.
However, in spite of oil prices being an average of $100 per
barrel and about 2.1m barrels a day, that great piece of luck was squandered
and the country’s social and physical infrastructure neglected.
We were left with no savings and huge infrastructure
deficit.
The APC Government’s Campaign rallying cry to restore
security, re-balance the economy and fight corruption was not all rhetoric.
The country must first be secured. The economy must be
re-balanced so that we do not depend on oil alone. We must fight corruption
which is Nigeria’s Number One Enemy. Our Administration is tackling these tasks
in earnest.
In the past two years, Nigeria has recorded appreciable
gains in political freedom. A political Party at the Centre losing elections of
State Governor, National Assembly seat and even State Assemblies to the
opposition parties is new to Nigeria. Added to these are complete freedom to
associate, to hold and disseminate opinions. Such developments clearly attest
to the country’s growing political development. But like all freedoms, this is
open to abuse.
Recent calls on re-structuring, quite proper in a legitimate
debate, has let in highly irresponsible groups to call for dismemberment of the
country. We can not and we will not allow such advocacy.
As a young Army Officer, I took part from the beginning to
the end in our tragic civil war costing about 2m lives, resulting in fearful
destruction and untold suffering. Those who are agitating for a re-run were not
born by 1967 and have no idea of the horrendous consequences of the civil conflict
which we went through.
I am very disappointed that responsible leaders of these
communities do not warn their hot-headed youths what the country went through.
Those who were there should tell those who were not there, the consequences of
such folly.
At all events, proper dialogue and any desired
constitutional changes should take place in a rational manner, at the National
and State Assemblies. These are the proper and legal fora for National debate,
not some lop-sided, un-democratic body with pre-determined set of objectives.
Government is keeping up the momentum of dialogue with
stakeholders in the Niger Delta to keep the peace. We intend to address genuine
grievances of the communities.
Government is grateful to the responsible leadership of
those communities and will pursue lasting peace in the Niger Delta.
SECURITY
On security, Nigerians must be grateful to our gallant Armed
Forces for rolling back the frontiers of Boko Haram’s terrorism, defeating them
and reducing them to cowardly attacks on soft and vulnerable targets.
Nigeria is grateful to its neighbours and the international
community for the collective efforts to defeat this world-wide menace of
terrorism.
Not even the most organized and most equipped police and
security forces in the world can escape the menace of modern day terrorism, as
we have seen in recent years in Europe and other parts of the world.
But we are not letting up. Our Armed Forces in an effort to
enhance the operational capability of troops of OPERATION LAFIYA DOLE have
established Mobile Strike Teams in the North East. These will ensure the final
push to wipe out the remnants of Boko Haram.
In addition, through targeted air strikes most of the
leadership and identified logistics bases and routes of the insurgents have
been neutralized. The Armed Forces have established a Naval presence in the
Lake Chad Basin as part of the coordinated military efforts to curtail the
movements or re-emergence of the sect in the area.
Government is working round the clock to ensure release of
the remaining Chibok girls, as well as other persons in Boko Haram captivity.
Government will continue to support the Armed Forces and other security
agencies to fight not only terrorism, but kidnapping, armed robberies,
herdsmen/farmers violence and to ensure peace, stability and security in our
country.
ECONOMY
With respect to the economy, the Government has remained
pro-active in its diversification policy. The Federal Government’s agricultural
Anchor Borrowers Programme, which I launched in November 2015, has been an
outstanding success with:
· N43.92 billion released through the CBN and 13
participating institutions,
· 200,000 small holder farmers from 29 states of the
federation benefitting,
· 233,000 hectares of farmland cultivating eight
commodities, namely Rice, Wheat, Maize, Cotton, soya-beans, Poultry, Cassava
and Groundnuts, in addition to fish farming.
These initiatives have been undertaken in close
collaboration with the states. I wish to commend the efforts of the Governors
of Kebbi, Lagos, Ebonyi and Jigawa States for their support to the rice and
fertilizer revolutions.
Equally commendable are contributions of the Governors of
Ondo, Edo, Delta, Imo, Cross River, Benue, Ogun, Kaduna and Plateau States for
their support for the Presidential initiative for palm oil, rubber, cashew,
cassava, potatoes and others crops.
With the abundance of rainfall last year and this year,
agriculture has enjoyed Divine intervention.
Since December last year, this Administration has produced
over 7 million 50Kg bags of fertilizer. Eleven blending plants with a capacity
of 2.1 million metric tons have been reactivated. We have saved $150 million in
foreign exchange and N60 billion in subsidy. Fertilizer prices have dropped
from N13,000 per 50Kg bag to N5,500.
Furthermore, a new presidential initiative is starting with
each state of the Federation creating a minimum of 10,000 jobs for unemployed
youths, again with the aid of CBN’s development finance initiatives.
Power remains a huge problem. As of September 12th,
production of power reached an all — time high of 7,001 Megawatts. Government
is increasing its investment, clearing up the operational and financial log jam
bedeviling the industry. We hope to reach 10,000 Megawatts by 2020.
Key priorities include better energy mix through solar and
Hydro technologies. I am glad to say that after many years of limbo, Mambilla
Power Project has taken off.
Elsewhere in the economy the special window created for
manufacturers, investors and exporters, foreign exchange requirements has
proved very effective. Since April, about $7 billion has come through this
window alone. The main effect of these policies is improved confidence in the
economy and better investment sentiments.
The country has recorded 7 consecutive months of lower
inflation, Naira rate is beginning to stabilize, appreciating from N525 per $1
in February this year to N360 today. Broad-based economic growth is leading us
out of recession.
Furthermore, in order to stabilize the polity, the Federal
Government gave additional support to states in the form of:
· State Excess Crude Account loans,
· Budget Support Facility,
· Stabilization Fund Release
to state and local government as follows:
· N200 billion in 2015
· N441 billion in 2016
· N1 trillion in 2017
Altogether totaling N1.642 trillion.
This was done to enable states to pay outstanding salaries,
pensions and small business suppliers who had been all but crippled over the
years.
In addition, the Government’s current N500 billion Special
Intervention Programme is targeting groups through;
· Home Grown School Feeding Programme,
· N-Power Job creation to provide loans to small-scale
traders and artisans,
· Conditional Cash Transfer,
· Family Homes Fund and
· Social Housing Scheme.
CORRUPTION
Fellow Nigerians,
We are fully aware that fighting corruption was never going
to be a straightforward task. We expected corrupt elements to use any weapon to
fight back, mainly judicial obstruction and political diversion. But we are
determined to eradicate corruption from our body politic.
In this fight, the Government has:
· Empowered teams of prosecutors,
· Assembled detailed databases,
· Accelerated the recovery of stolen funds.
The Administration’s new institutional reforms include:
· Enforcing Treasury Single Account,
· Whistle-Blowers Policy,
· Integrated Payroll Personnel and Information System.
We have signed multi-lateral cooperation agreements on
criminal matters with friendly countries. There are signs of increasing
cooperation from the Judiciary. Recently the Chief Justice of the Federation
directed Heads of all our Courts of first instance and Appeal to accelerate
hearings of corruption cases and dismiss any judicial officers found to have
been compromised.
Justice Salami has just been appointed to chair the
Judiciary’s anti-graft committee. Government expects a lot from this Committee.
I commend the National Assembly for refocusing on its
oversight committees. They should, in addition, ensure swift passage of enabling
corruption laws. But fighting corruption is a bottom to top operation. I call
on all Nigerians to combat corruption at every turn. By not asking for and
refusing to accept a bribe, by reporting unethical practices or by blowing a
whistle, together we can beat corruption. The government for its part will work
for accountability at all levels - Federal, State and Local Governments. CHANGE
will then be real.
As we enter the second half of our term of office, we intend
to accelerate progress and intensify our resolve to fix the country’s
challenges and problems.
Thank you and a happy holiday to all of you.
God bless our country
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