Good wishes to Buhari, kudos to Osinbajo

I wish to use your robust medium to wish President Muhammadu Buhari continued good health as he recuperates in the UK. The acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, also deserves the unflinching support of all Nigerians. The confidence of the people in the ability of the Professor to steer the nation to greater heights is not in […]

I wish to use your robust medium to wish President Muhammadu Buhari continued good health as he recuperates in the UK. The acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, also deserves the unflinching support of all Nigerians. The confidence of the people in the ability of the Professor to steer the nation to greater heights is not in question.  A formidable political forum had recently advised the leadership against romancing with sycophants who openly hobnobbed with the last regime and whose interests may be at variance with those of the nation.  I support the call.  The present administration had recorded a number of successes such as restoring peace and stability in the North East and the Niger Delta regions.  

Corruption which threatened the corporate existence of the country had been frontally attacked and degraded.  It is no more a threat though vehemently fighting back.  All hands must be on deck to strengthen the resolve of the national leadership under President Buhari to fight to finish all the ills plaguing the growth of the country.  

Now that the right government is in place, all the agencies displaying “I don’t care attitude” through subtle opposition to the fight against corruption, should take a cue from what the citizens of this country really want and change their unfaithful tactics.  Election in 2019 would not be for fair weather friends nor would it be based on party affiliation but the honesty and potentials of individual contestants to give the much needed good and practical leadership to the people.  The people are now wiser. Before then, the attention of government is required in multiple fronts.  We need the sustenance of peace no matter the cost.  We require free education at all levels for the nation to move forward alongside a radical improvement of infrastructure and teachers welfare.  

Agriculture has some hopes of revival under this administration.  However without farm machinery and other inputs at the beck and call of rural farmers, no amount of jingles will propel production of foodstuff to the required optimum.  Fertilizer could be easily made available to farmers through the deliberate resuscitation of the moribund farm service centres established decades ago.  Without functional farm service centres spread across all district, village areas and local government headquarters where inputs could be easily obtained, the average farmer in the rural areas would permanently remain under the bondage of shylock corrupt and cheating staff of government agencies. Government should not allow or hands off completely the agricultural sector to businessmen to manage.  The forthright, commendable and successful anchor borrowers’ scheme launched last year is the correct eye-opener as to the direction that could be followed in improving general agriculture in the country’s march towards self-sufficiency in food. The threat of smugglers and their principals to turn the good aims of government upside down must be fearlessly addressed through the known mechanisms of government. Otherwise the good intentions to make us self-sufficient in what we grow to eat and probably to export would come to naught and take the nation back to square one.  The neighbouring countries allegedly being used to dump imported  rice and other contraband in large warehouses for easy smuggling into Nigeria through the connivance and cooperation of unpatriotic obese custom personnel, should be positively engaged at the highest levels of government so that ordinary and helpless Nigerians would be protected from the current “economic war” unleashed by the desperate Asian nations and their quislings on the Nigerian open economic front.  Multidimensional approach to agriculture is necessary e.g. the anchor borrowers’ scheme should include maize, sorghum, yams and cassava and not restricted to rice only.  We wish Mr. President quick recovery and strength in the years ahead.  

Abubakar Usman, Bauchi, [email protected]