Mohammadu Buhari said he almost resigned as president because of the
enormity of challenges facing the country due to the fall in the price of
crude oil.
According to him, because of the fall in the price of crude oil which is
the live wire of the economy, 27 states in the country could not pay
salaries.
President Buhari spoke at the presidential parley with the senior
executive course no 38 of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic
Studies (NIPPS), Kuru at the State House.
Buhari argued that he doesn’t believe Nigeria spent billions of dollars on
food and fuel importation as they are no evidence on ground to point to
this fact.
He said “For 16 years and consecutive government’s of the other party and
you know that there was unprecedented revenue realised, the oil projection
which can be verified was 2.1 million barrels per day. From 1999-2015 the
average cost of each Nigerian barrel of oil was $100 per barrel.
“When we came it fell to less than $30 per barrel and is now it is between
40 and 50. Actually I felt like absconding because 27 out of 36 states in
Nigeria cannot pay salaries and we know they have no other source than to
depend on salaries.
“And I asked any savings? I was told there was no savings, And I asked
what have you done on agriculture, power, rails, roads. Nothing. You know
more than I do because you move around. I have not been moving around
since after elections but you do, how many of the Trunk A roads are still
good enough?
“How many power do we have although there are some elements of sabotage. I
was told the money was used to import food and fuel. I didn’t believe the
answer and I still don’t believe it.
“Until now substantial number of people in the East eat garri and
groundnut, in the West pounded yam, cassava, vegetables, in the north tuwo
which is made from any of the grains, millet, sorghum. They eat it in the
night and warm it in the morning and eat it and take fura De nunu in the
afternoon. How many of those people can afford foreign food?
According to him, the legislature dedicated 445,000 barrels per day and
that is just 60 % of our requirements saying ” I said okay what of the
40%? The marketers that are bringing it just present documents, papers are
just stamped and monies are taken away adding that “This is the type of
things that the Nigerian elites are doing for our own country. When you go
back look at your colleagues and encourage them to be truly Nigerians.”
Buhari noted that poverty reduction and inclusive development have become
pillars of his administration and very close to his heart.
“I am very pleased that the Participants, through the able leadership of
the National Institute of Management and the faculty members, have taken
the task seriously, as is evident in the report presented. I congratulate
you for painstakingly committing your time and energy to produce such a
valuable policy-oriented report that will guide this administration.
“I have looked forward to receiving this report because it touches on one
of the fundamental problems confronting our nation. The Report comes at a
time when our economy is experiencing a downturn and all efforts are being
made by this administration to get our country moving again, Buhari said.
The president pointed out that in the last one and half years of his
administration, the economy has experienced some tough times, particularly
with the decline in oil revenues, which has some harsh impacts on
Nigerians at the grassroots.
He stressed that it is also important to note that the economic recession
is not the making of this administration, but rather a consequence of bad
management of the economy in the past couple of decades. Nor is recession
limited to Nigeria – there are far, far worse cases than Nigeria.
He asserted that “Whatever the scale of the problem the important thing is
how one tackles it. Accordingly, this administration is committed to
finding lasting solutions to our economic structural imbalance.
“Let us have faith in our great nation that we will come out of this
recession vibrant and strong. I am glad that the report presented today
has given us reason to keep faith in our ability to overcome our
challenges.
According to him, there is no doubt that poverty for decades has been a
major challenge to Nigeria as a nation despite the country’s enormous
wealth.
He lamented that several policies and programmes that have been
implemented over the years, as rightly observed by the report, have not
broken the cycle of poverty in Nigeria.
He further stated that from the findings of the research by the
Participants, it is evident that strengthening institutions is key to
reducing poverty and engendering inclusive development.
“It is impossible for this administration to ignore the poor who made
great sacrifice to bring us to government. Ours more than any other
government in the history of Nigeria is a people’s government. We
therefore must and we will keep faith with the people.
“It is in this light that I wish to declare the commitment of this
administration to the Sustainable Development Goals, most especially to
ending extreme poverty in Nigeria.
“It is not going to be easy, but we are committed to dealing with the
challenges in a decisive manner. Fortunately, the Report of the
Participants has prescribed some concrete measures on how to reduce
poverty in the country, He added.
President Buhari commended the efforts of the National Institute for
keeping faith and moving Nigeria towards a better society.
“The Institute, even with the limited resources, was able to come up with
such a policy-oriented research findings. I want to assure you that the
Federal Executive Council will carefully study this Report and implement
all the practical recommendations” He stated.
During his remarks , Acting DG of NIPSS, Jonathan Juma said a lot can be
done by the national institute if more robust budgetary support is
extended to it.
According to him, for the Institute to operate as an “apex institution”
and be at the forefront of relevant researches for national development ,
it is required to recruit and retain top level academics, very senior
technocrats and other experienced specialized experts.
“At the moment, I must confess to you that the national institute is
operating below its conceived capacity due to its inability to attract a
full complement of requisite staff who would conduct research across broad
strategic areas of national life and also impact new knowledge.
“The financial situation of the national institute is precarious. The
payments for utility services are in arrears and worse still, we have to
live with threats of litigation from numerous creditors. Operational
vehicles in the institute’s fleet have aged and are a source of constant
embarrassment .
We have looked inward and appealed to the generosity of individuals and
corporate Nigeria for support and we are glad that some have responded
positively. However, a decisive presidential intervention for a
sustainable funding of NIPSS is urgently required”, he said.