Buhari has consolidated his place in history

President Muhammadu Buhari was purposely elected to govern the most populous nation in Africa simply because of his impressive campaign slogan of change. Nigerians from all walks of life including the rich and poor, men and women, young and old have voted massively in favour of President Buhari because of the prospect of the anticipated […]

President Muhammadu Buhari was purposely elected to govern the most populous nation in Africa simply because of his impressive campaign slogan of change. Nigerians from all walks of life including the rich and poor, men and women, young and old have voted massively in favour of President Buhari because of the prospect of the anticipated change.

President Buhari has always been consistent in terms of his disdain for indiscipline and corruption. But change is something that is very difficult to achieve especially in a very complex and sometimes hostile entity like Nigeria. 

There are so many forces that are frustrating the change agenda of the President. In addition to this, President Buhari came at a very wrong time, when prices of crude oil in the international markets have crashed. Previous governments have failed to diversify the economy, the country relies solely on one single commodity whose price has never been reliable, that is why the current economic downturn is more pronounced in Nigeria. He also came at a time when militants in the Niger delta have renewed their attacks on oil and gas installations which significantly reduced the quantity of Nigeria’s daily outputs. He equally became President when many states have failed to settle their salary obligations. But in spite of these temporary and partial setbacks, profound changes have been recorded in just less than two years of President Buhari’s leadership. One of the most classic achievements of President Buhari has to do with the issue of security. In the build up to the 2015 general election, the President spoke extensively about the nagging problem of insecurity in the country and had promised to tackle it once and for all, in this context therefore the President must be absolutely commended for securing our lives. Nigerians are no longer apprehensive to go about their daily activities. 

The recruitment of ten thousand men and women into the workforce of the Nigerian police is still fresh in our minds, it was a great milestone that should be applauded by all well-meaning Nigerians. Two hundred and fifty thousand graduates have already been enrolled into the N-Power scheme and they have already started receiving a monthly stipend of 30,000 naira so as to cushion the negative effect of unemployment on their lives. The same number of graduates will subsequently be enrolled. The administration of Buhari had also deliberately intensified efforts to provide a paradigm shift from our heavy reliance on petrodollars to agric sector. As a result of this shift, many people have committed substantial amount of their resources into the sector. That was the reason why the country had witnessed drastic improvement in terms of farm produce. Given the fertility of Nigeria’s soil, the country will become self-sufficient in the area of food production in the next few years. 

The implementation of Treasury Single Account (TSA) had reduced corruption at the federal level to the barest minimum because the system gives little or no room for government officials to indulge in massive loot of funds under their custody. 

It is very comforting to know that at least government is now making serious efforts to ease the sufferings of the masses by addressing the inflationary trends in the country that is why prices of essential commodities are coming down fast enough. 

President Buhari should be celebrated for reviving our hope and for achieving so much within a short time in spite of all the criticisms that he had to contend with on a daily basis. This is unprecedented in Nigeria. With these accomplishments, President Buhari should be rest assured that his place in history is already consolidated. 

Bashir Shehu Yusuf, Gezawa,Kano State.