President Muhammadu Buhari
Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has celebrated with Nigerians wishing them well on the country’s 59th Independence Day.
Read full transcript below:
Dear Compatriots,
1st October each year is an opportunity for us to reflect and thank God for his endless blessings on our country.
2. It is also a time for us, collectively, to:
3. Remember the sacrifices made by our Founders and great leaders
past; by soldiers, by distinguished public servants; by traditional
leaders, by our workers —- sacrifices on which Nigeria has been built
over the 59 years since Independence in 1960; and
4. Rededicate ourselves to attaining the goals which we have set
for ourselves: a united, prosperous and purposeful nation in the face of
21st century opportunities and challenges.
5. In the past four years, the majority of Nigerians have committed
to Change for the Better. Indeed, this Administration was re-elected by
Nigerians on a mandate to deliver positive and enduring Change –
through maintaining our National Security; restoring sustainable and
inclusive Economic Growth and Development; and fighting Corruption
against all internal and external threats.
6. This Change can only be delivered if we are united in purpose,
as individuals and as a nation. We must all remain committed to
achieving this positive and enduring Change. As I stated four years ago,
“Change does not just happen… We must change our lawless habits, our
attitude to public office and public trust… simply put, to bring about
change, we must change ourselves by being law-abiding citizens.”
SECURITY:
7. Good Governance and Economic Development cannot be sustained
without an enabling environment of peace and security. In the last four
years, we have combatted the terrorist scourge of Boko Haram. We owe a
debt of gratitude to our gallant men and women in arms, through whose
efforts we have been able to achieve the present results. We are also
grateful to our neighbours and allies – within the region and across the
world – who have supported us on this front.
8. The capacity of our armed forces to defend our territorial
integrity continues to be enhanced by the acquisition of military
hardware as well as continued improvements in the working conditions of
our service men and women.
9. The Ministry of Police Affairs has been resuscitated to oversee
the development and implementation of strategies to enhance internal
security. My recent assent to the Nigerian Police Trust Fund
(Establishment) Act has created a legal framework to support our Police
with increased fiscal resources to enhance their law enforcement
capabilities.
10. These initiatives are being complemented by the ongoing
recruitment of 10,000 constables into the Nigeria Police Force. This
clearly demonstrates our commitment to arrest the incidence of armed
robbery, kidnapping and other violent crimes across our nation.
11. We remain equally resolute in our efforts to combat militant
attacks on our oil and gas facilities in the Niger Delta and accelerate
the Ogoni Clean-up to address long-standing environmental challenges in
that region.
12. The recent redeployment of the Niger Delta Development
Commission from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the
Federation, to the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs underscores our
commitment to enhance the living standards of our communities in the
Niger Delta, through coordinated and appropriate programmes.
13. Our attention is increasingly being focused on cyber-crimes and
the abuse of technology through hate speech and other divisive material
being propagated on social media. Whilst we uphold the Constitutional
rights of our people to freedom of expression and association, where the
purported exercise of these rights infringes on the rights of other
citizens or threatens to undermine our National Security, we will take
firm and decisive action.
14. In this regard, I reiterate my call for all to exercise
restraint, tolerance and mutual respect in airing their grievances and
frustrations. Whilst the ongoing national discourse on various political
and religious issues is healthy and welcome, we must not forget the
lessons of our past – lessons that are most relevant on a day such as
this.
15. The path of hatred and distrust only leads to hostility and
destruction. I believe that the vast majority of Nigerians would rather
tread the path of peace and prosperity, as we continue to uphold and
cherish our unity.
ACCELERATING SUSTAINABLE AND INCLUSIVE ECONOMY GROWTH
16. This Administration inherited a skewed economy, where the Oil
Sector comprised only 8% of Gross Domestic Product but contributed 70%
of government revenue and 90% foreign exchange earnings over the years.
Past periods of relatively high economic growth were driven by our
reliance on Oil Sector revenues to finance our demand for imported goods
and services. Regrettably, previous governments abandoned the residual
Investment-driven Non-Oil Sector, which constituted 40% of Gross
Domestic Product and comprised agriculture, livestock, agro-processing,
arts, entertainment, mining and manufacturing activities that provide
millions of jobs for able-bodied Nigerians and utilize locally available
raw materials and labour for production.
17. To address this imbalance, our commitment to achieving economic
diversification has been at the heart of our economic strategies under
the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, which I launched on the 5th of
April, 2017.
18. This medium-term development plan charted the trajectory for
our economy to exit from recession and return to the path of
sustainable, diversified and inclusive growth for Nigerians. Pursuant to
these reforms, the economy has recovered and we have had 9 successive
quarters of growth since our exit from recession. The exchange rate in
the last 3 years has remained stable, with robust reserves of US$42.5
billion, up from US$23 billion in October 2016.
19. Learning from the mistakes of the past, this Administration is
committed to responsibly managing our oil wealth endowments. We will
continue to prudently save our oil income and invest more in the non-oil
job-creating sectors.
20. In this regard, we are significantly increasing investments in
critical infrastructure. Last year, capital releases only commenced with
the approval of the Budget in June 2018. However, as at 20th June this
year, up to N1.74 trillion had been released for capital projects in the
2018 fiscal year.
21. Implementation of the 2019 Capital Budget, which was only
approved in June 2019, will be accelerated to ensure that critical
priority projects are completed or substantially addressed. The Ministry
of Finance, Budget and National Planning has been directed to release
N600 billion for Capital Expenditure in the next 3 months.
22. To maximise impact, we shall continue to increasingly welcome
and encourage private capital for infrastructural development through
Public Private Partnerships. Through the Road Infrastructure Tax Credit
Scheme, which I initiated in January this year, we are giving incentives
to private sector inflow of over N205 billion in 19 Nigerian roads and
bridges of 794.4km across in 11 States of the Federation.
23. As we push to diversify the economy, we still remain focused on
optimizing the revenues generated from the oil and gas sector. We will,
working with the Legislature, soon pass the Petroleum Industry Bill and
amendments to the Deep Offshore Act and Inland Basin Production Sharing
Contracts Act into law, to ensure Government obtains a fair share of
oil revenues, whilst encouraging private sector investment.
24. We will also continue our fight against illegal bunkering of
crude oil and the smuggling of refined petroleum products across our
borders, including the diligent prosecution and conviction of offenders
found guilty of these acts. Whilst Nigeria remains committed to free and
fair continental and international trade, we will not hesitate to take
all necessary steps to tackle illegal smuggling, transshipment and other
predatory trade practices that destroy jobs in our country.
25. We are resolute in reforming the power sector. In August this
year, we launched the Presidential Power Initiative to modernize the
National Grid in 3 phases: starting from 5 Gigawatts to 7 Gigawatts,
then to 11 Gigawatts by 2023, and finally 25 Gigawatts afterwards. This
programme, in partnership with the German Government and Siemens, will
provide end-to-end electrification solutions that will resolve our
transmission and distribution challenges.
26. The programme will also look to localize the development and
assembly of smart meters as well as the operations and maintenance
capabilities of transmission and distribution infrastructure.
27. I am pleased with the improved inter-agency collaboration
between the Ministry of Power and the regulators in the banking and
power sectors to ensure that electricity sales, billings and collections
are automated and become cashless.
28. These initiatives are important to ensure that the technical
and collection losses in the sector are substantially reduced. I remain
confident that Nigerians will have affordable and uninterrupted
electricity supply in the not too distant future.
29. Our efforts to improve the power sector will complement other
infrastructure investments projects under the Presidential
Infrastructure Development Fund, which is investing in the Mambilla
Power Plant project, as well as key economic road infrastructure such as
the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Second Niger Bridge and Abuja-Kano
Expressway. The first set of these projects remain on track to be
completed by 2022.
30. Our journey to food security and self-sufficiency is well
underway. We have made remarkable progress in almost all segments of the
agriculture value chain, from fertilizers to rice, to animal feed
production. We shall sustain these policies to ensure additional
investments are channeled, thereby creating more jobs in the sector. We
must not go back to the days of importing food and thereby exporting
jobs.
31. Our commitment to achieving macroeconomic stability and
economic diversification, has been underscored by the merger of the
Ministry of Finance with the Ministry of Budget and National Planning.
32. This combined Ministry has the important mandate to enhance the
management of domestic and global fiscal risks; coordinate policies
with the trade and monetary authorities; raise and deploy revenues to
fund budgeted expenditure; and integrate annual budgets and medium-term
fiscal strategies.
33. With this, our revenue-generating and reporting agencies will
come under much greater scrutiny, going forward, as the new performance
management framework will reward exceptional revenue performance, while
severe consequences will attend failures to achieve agreed revenue
targets.
34. I recently constituted an Economic Advisory Council to advise
me on inclusive and sustainable macroeconomic, fiscal and monetary
policies. This independent body will work with relevant Cabinet members
and the heads of key monetary, fiscal and trade agencies to ensure we
remain on track as we strive for collective prosperity. However, we are
also committed to ensure that the inconvenience associated with any
painful policy adjustments, is moderated, such that the poor and the
vulnerable, who are most at risk, do not bear the brunt.
35. Our ongoing N500 billion Special Intervention Programme
continues to target these vulnerable groups, through the Home-grown
School Feeding Programme, Government Economic Empowerment Programme,
N-Power Job Creation Programme, loans for traders and artisans,
Conditional Cash Transfers to the poorest families and social housing
scheme.
36. To institutionalize these impactful programmes, we created the
Ministry for Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social
Development which shall consolidate and build on our achievements to
date. To the beneficiaries of these programmes, I want to reassure you
that our commitment to social inclusion will only increase.
37. Our population growth rate remains amongst the highest in the
world, presenting both challenges as well as opportunities. It is our
collective responsibility to ensure that we provide adequate resources
to meet the basic needs of our teeming youth.
38. Accordingly, we shall continue to invest in education, health,
water and sanitation, as well as food security, to ensure that their
basic needs are met, while providing them with every opportunity to live
peaceful, prosperous and productive lives.
FIGHTING CORRUPTION AND RESTORING GOOD GOVERNANCE:
39. On fighting corruption, our institutional reforms to enforce
the Treasury Single Account policy, introduce the Whistle-blowers’
Initiative, expand the coverage of the Integrated Payroll Personnel and
Information System as well as the Government Integrated Management
Information System have saved billions of Naira over the last four
years, and deterred the rampant theft and mismanagement of public funds
that have plagued our public service.
40. The Ministry of Justice, the Independent Corrupt Practices
Commission, and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission will
continue to address this menace. We are determined to ensure that
transparency and good governance are institutionalized in public
service.
41. We must commit to installing a culture of Good Governance in
all we do. This Administration has fought against corruption, by
investigating and prosecuting those accused of embezzlement and the
misuse of public resources. We have empowered teams of prosecutors,
assembled detailed databases of evidence, traced the proceeds of crimes
and accelerated the recovery of stolen funds.
42. Furthermore, we partnered with our friends abroad to combat tax
evasion, smuggling, terrorism and illicit financial flows. In June
2018, I assented to the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act, to
provide a domestic legal framework for obtaining international
assistance in criminal matters.
43. This measure has already strengthened our law enforcement
agencies in obtaining evidence, investigating suspects and facilitating
the recovery, forfeiture and confiscation of property implicated as
proceeds of crime.
44. An example is the US$300 million recently identified as part of
the Abacha money-laundering case, working closely with the Government
of the United States of America. The Federal Ministry of Justice is
working with the US Department of Justice to conclude a Memorandum of
Understanding to expedite the repatriation of these funds.
45. The P & ID Arbitral Award has underscored the manner in
which significant economic damage has been caused by the past activities
of a few corrupt and unpatriotic Nigerians.
46. The policies that we are putting in place today are to ensure
such criminal and unpatriotic acts do not go without consequences. Our
renewed partnership with the 9th National Assembly will facilitate the
swift passage of enabling laws that will institutionalize these
anti-corruption efforts in our criminal justice system.
47. In this connection, I call upon our States to intensify their
own efforts to instill greater fiscal transparency and accountability.
And to ensure greater fiscal efficiency and optimum use of our very
scarce resources.
48. The blight of Corruption is fighting back. Nevertheless, this
is a battle that we shall see through and this is a war, which we shall
win by the Grace of God.
49. I will also call upon all Nigerians, from every walk of life,
to combat Corruption at every turn. By choosing to question and confront
corrupt practices, by reporting unethical practices or through
whistleblowing. Together, we can overcome corruption and will no longer
be a country defined by corruption.
50. Fellow Nigerians, let me reiterate my call for unity across our dear nation.
51. Nigeria will emerge from our present challenges stronger and
more resilient than ever – but only if all of us join hands to entrench
Good Governance, foster Inclusive Economic Development, and defend and
protect our Nation from all those who would wish us ill.
52. I thank you most sincerely and wish you a Happy Independence Anniversary.
53. May God bless you all, and may He continue to bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.