Reveling in his victory declared by the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) in last Saturday’s election, President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, warned of tougher times for Nigerians, following his renewed mandate to pilot the affairs of the country in the next four years. The President spoke in Abuja while receiving members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) who were in the Presidential Villa to congratulate him over his victory.
“If I lost the election, I don’t know how many of them (ministers) will be here. “My last lap of four years, I think it is going to be tough because people are being forgetful. That was why wherever I went; I reminded them of the campaign promise of our party, particularly security, as I kept on saying that you have to secure the country well and institutions. If you don’t secure the country, you can’t achieve anything no matter how many programmes you put in place,” Buhari noted.
The President said, the next phase of his administration will continue to focus on tackling insecurity, fighting corruption and creating jobs for Nigeria’s teeming youths. Buhari said his ability to traverse the 36 states of the country including Abuja during the campaigns was prove to his skeptics of his medical fitness to continue with the rigorous task of providing leadership.
He said his campaign, sometimes in two states per day, was also a proof of his sound disposition and readiness to provide leadership for the next four years. “During the campaigns, I tried to visit the 36 states and Abuja, firstly, to prove to the other side (opposition) that I’m fit. I tried to cover two states per day and secondly, not to make anybody feel that any state had been left out,” Buhari said.
The President also hailed his administration’s strides in the area of agriculture, where he said the government made tremendous savings in foreign exchange and ploughing the resources for use in other sectors including infrastructure provision. “That is a very good thing because the oil sector is becoming very difficult to predict. It is becoming unpredictable and depending on it makes us materially insecure but thank goodness, agriculture has come to save it and people are appreciating it.”
At the brief ceremony that started around mid-day, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, spoke on behalf of the public service and congratulated the President and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo for their victory at the polls. According to Mustapha, the President’s victory was a well-deserved success as it was a referendum of honesty and sincerity, adding that the public service totally aligned itself with the millions of other Nigerians who queued up at the polling units to cast their ballots.
Nineteen ministers were present during the ceremony that held inside the Council chamber in Aso Rock and attended by Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari; Head of Service, Winifred Oyo-Ita, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Maj Gen Babagana Mongunu (rtd) and some presidential aides. Two congratulatory cards were presented to the President by Mustapha and Oyo-Ita, respectively.
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