President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday thanked former President Olusegun Obasanjo for the scathing criticism of his administration, saying he had no reason to believe that there was any ulterior motive.
The President also said his administration would “not go into a state of funk for whatever reason.”
He said he believed that Obasanjo’s busy schedule must have denied him the time to really appreciate the enormity of the success recorded by his administration.
The remarks by the president are contained in a statement issued in reply to Obasanjo’s statement by the Minister of Information and Cuture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.
Obasanjo had, in a long “Special Statement” criticized the Buhari administration, declaring that it had not brought about the promised change that made Nigerians to vote for it in 2015.
According to him the former president said rather than continue in office, Buhari should join the league of elders who would operate on the sideline, advising others on how to move the country forward.
Among other things, Obasanjo accused the president of nepotism, lack of understanding of the economic peculiarity of the country and internal politics.
But in the statement issued in response to Obasanjo’s condemnation, Buhari gave a long list of the achievements of his administration.
The achievement, he said, included the gradual diversification of the economy from oil to agriculture and drastic reduction in the dependence on imported rice.
He spoke about the efforts in infrastructure development which included roads and rails among others.
The president spoke of the improvement in the economic sphere which had made it possible for the nation to exit from recession.
He promised that with the way things were going, the effect would soon be felt by the generality of the people of Nigeria in their living standards.
He also spoke about the creation of employment opportunities as one of the achievements of his government.
His words: “Our Social Investment Programme is Nigeria’s most ambitious social welfare programme ever. Currently, 5.2 million primary school children in 28,249 schools in 19 states are being fed daily; 200,000 unemployed graduates have enlisted into the N-power Job Scheme, and a quarter of a million loans already distributed to artisans, traders, and farmers.
“Finally, our investment in infrastructure is simply unprecedented. This is because infrastructure is key to faster economic growth and development.
“Here is a synopsis of what we have done in this area:
- Power Generation at an all-time high of 7,000mw and all can be transmitted.
*RAIL: Lagos-Kano Standard Gauge is on. Lagos-Ibadan sector ready 2019, Kano-Kaduna ready 2019; The entire stretch ready 2021; Negotiations on for Coastal Rail covering 15 cities from Lagos to Calabar.
- ROAD: 25 major highways being funded with the N100b Sukuk Bond, and all geo-political zones are benefitting equally.”
The president also advised Nigerians not to lose faith in his administration.
He said he would not disappoint on the mandate given to him.
