Job Osazuwa
While President Muhammadu Buhari is still savouring his victory at the February 23 election, Nigerians across political parties, and religious and ethnic divides are speaking on what they expect from him.
Those who spoke with Daily Sun did not mince words in charging the President to intensify his efforts in improving on what he had done in the past to make the economy viable. The respondents were unanimous in their submission that the economy needs to be injected with fresh ideas in order to open the window for more people to be gainfully employed.
Other items that appeared repeatedly on the people’s demand lists were quality education, stable power supply, a functional health care system, anti-graft war, functional transportation system across Nigeria and unity among the people.
A businessman who deals in telecommunication gadgets, Mr. Onoriode Ogugu, urged the president not to be carried away by his victory at the polls, but to focus on the task ahead.
“The campaigns and election are over, so it is time for real business. Governance goes beyond mere promises. There should be feasible steps.
“The President said four years was not enough for his administration to repair all the damage that his predecessors did to the economy. Now that he has got another four years, he must swing into action and prove his critics wrong. We will not accept excuses from our President anymore. This last lap will be more of accountability to the people,” he said.
On his part, Mr. Dennis Onwuegbu, who is a media consultant and the editor-in-chief, AcresAfrica magazine, said it was high time the President stopped the blame game and accepted the reality on ground so as to deliver the dividends of democracy to the people with the available resources.
“Mr. President should aim at strengthening institutions, pursue a clearly-defined economic policy. After all, a virile democracy is all about a working economy. The blame game of the last four years is no longer tenable. This second term offers him an opportunity to etch his name in the positive columns of history,” Onwuegbu said.
In his contribution, Mr. Amieghe Emmanuel, who runs a printing press in Benin City, Edo State, said he was not expecting anything much from the Buhari-led administration.
“I expect President Buhari to ruthlessly tackle the insecurity in the North and some other parts of the country. This is important because no government can achieve any meaningful development in an atmosphere enmeshed in conflict. He should avoid playing ethnic politics with anything that concerns Nigeria.
“I expect appointments and cabinet reshuffle to cut across the six geo-political zones. There should be no nepotism in handling governance and in making appointments.
“A lot of Nigerians are not clear about his ‘Next Level’ agenda. He should make it clearer what he means by that campaign slogan. Maybe he should itemise what he will do in the next four years instead of merely asking us to follow him to the next level. He should not forget the fact that some of us are not satisfied with how far he has governed Nigeria in the last four years. And he must tell us in plain terms how he hopes to execute his plans for the benefit of all,” Emmanuel said.
A civil engineer with one of the major construction companies in Nigeria, Oladele Adebiyi Adelowo, said: “Now that he has been re-elected, l expect him to provide an atmosphere for the creation of more jobs other than the N-Power for the unemployed graduates.
“We want 24-hour power supply which can boost the economy. War against corruption in all its ramifications must be in place. Above all, he should make his governance now enjoyable by all, even by the less-privileged.
“There should not be killing of any Nigerian for whatever reason. The President must uphold the sanctity of life, irrespective of tribe or religion.”
A Lagos-based economic analyst, Mr. Anayo Ezugwu, tasked the President to dwell more on how to strengthen the country’s economy. He believes that, once the economy is running smoothly, a lot of crises in the land would be naturally taken care of.
“I want the President to fix the economy first in order to create employment. The current unemployment figures should be of serious concern to him and all lovers of the country. The reaction of the Nigerian stock market after his re-election shows that investors are worried. So, he must, as a matter of urgency, address all the concerns that led to this negative reaction. The ease of doing business must improve to attract investors. Unless he improves the economy, the hardship in the country will continue. He needs to address security concerns across the country mostly banditry, herdsmen/farmers’ crisis, kidnapping and Boko Haram. He also needs to unite the country through his actions and inactions. The country is so polarised across religious and ethnic lines. We have never had it this bad as a country.
“He must allow other arms of government to be truly independent. Buhari should sign the amended Electoral Act into law to correct all the challenges witnessed in the just-concluded elections. The service chiefs must work harder to improve the security in the land. We also need a vibrant minister of finance that understands how economies work. Most of the present ministers should be relieved of the positions by May 29, to bring freshness into the system.
“The challenge, going forward, would be the economy because if Buhari changes the current economic managers by the end of this tenure, mostly Godwin Emefiele, it might upset the little current economic gains in the country. I think the President should allow some of these managers to continue beyond May 29,” Ezugwu said.
A Cambridge-certified economics teacher, Bernard Oluwaseun Ogunbi, urged Buhari to strive towards a more productive economy by creating the enabling environment for local manufacturers to thrive.
“Our President must improve on infrastructure. He should sustain or intensify the onslaught against insurgency so that the enemies of peace can be totally defeated. There is the need for Buhari as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria to create a joint task force to tackle the insurgents.
“He must improve the quality of education. The President should make appointments and job opportunities available for the competent masses, not for party members alone. The minimum wage is still laughable because it cannot solve any worker’s needs.
“I urge him to continue with the fight against corruption. Corruption has so much dealt with us in the past. I believe that we cannot make any headway as a country if we treat corruption with levity. It is a war that must spare no one, including members of APC. His government has to improve the health sector because we are still lagging behind in that area. Avoidable deaths are still recorded out of dearth of facilities and sometimes negligence on the part of health care workers.
“We must not forget the need to make electricity constant. Virtually all the sectors need regular power supply to function optimally. Uninterrupted power can attract investments and create job opportunities for the people. Artisans and other small and medium entrepreneurs will become active.
“l would love President Buhari to see to better quality of products. The agencies in charge of ensuring that standards are maintained should up their surveillance so that counterfeiters will be exposed. The need for all Nigerians to support the agencies cannot be overemphasized.
“Education is key to the rapid development of any nation. Therefore, the President should consider subsidizing education. It requires huge investment and sustainable commitment to achieve quality education. Policy must be drafted and closely monitored for full implementation. Our budgetary allocation and utilisation is still very poor and we should not continue like this.
“In the last four years, what I think he didn’t do well is poor implementation of plans/policies and lack of monitoring. He took the killings across Nigeria with levity. We should have definite boundaries with neighbouring countries in order to prevent intruders from penetrating the country and inflicting evil on us,” Ogunbi said.
In his submission, a lecturer at the Lagos State University and the director of Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), Prof. Ishaq Akintola, joined others to call on the President to concentrate on infrastructure.
Said he: “Too many Nigerians die in road accidents every day. Bad roads also waste our time and cause gridlocks. The extension of railways should continue so as to supplant hundreds of trailers that have constituted themselves into hired assassins on our roads.
“The President should return Arabic to the naira. It was removed by ex-President Goodluck Jonathan and it hurt Muslims around the country.
“On the other hand, the President should grant presidential pardon to the 54 soldiers currently languishing in jail for refusing to fight Boko Haram without better weapons. MURIC considers the 54 soldiers as heroes. They exposed the fraud in arms dealings.”
A student in one of Nigeria’s federal universities, Aminat Wayas, pleaded with Buhari not to disappoint millions of Nigerians who voted for him for a second term. She charged him to complete all the ongoing projects before he leaves office in 2023.
“Many people voted for President Buhari not just to be the President for a second tenure, but to fulfil and make sure he completes his unfinished projects. I expect PMB to fulfil certain national issues, especially the unity of the people.
“He should carry out an upward review of the monthly allowance for corps members. We need uninterrupted academic activities in our higher institutions. The issue of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) should be resolved once and for all. Facilities in school should be upgraded for the benefit of students and teachers.
“I urge PMB to put his words to heart, especially when he said ‘I am for nobody and I am for everybody.’ He should treat all citizens the same because he is the President of Nigeria and not for some set of people.
“I expect national security, peace, introduction of development schemes, increment of minimum wage, and many more,” she said.
A lawyer, who is based in Lagos, Mr. Matthew Osondu, tasked the President to hold the rule of law in high esteem throughout his next four years in office.
His words: “The fulcrum of democracy is strict adherence to the rule of law. The president must be reminded that the law is superior to any individual, including the president. We expect him to respect court judgments. Once the judiciary is disregarded by the number one citizen, the president, then our democracy is gone.
“I totally support his anti-corruption war but it must not be selective. Let every suspect be treated equally without giving special treatment to some persons.”
An electrical engineer in Lagos, Mr. Dapo Adepoju stated: “The president should create opportunities for programmers and developers to create software that will bring solutions to problems in the industry. Therefore, it will stop Nigerians from patronising the foreign developers and programmers to solve our issues in the country.
“He should work with the National Assembly and other necessary arms of government and agencies to ensure that the huge salary and allowances collected by senators and House of Representatives members are reduced. Also, I want constituency projects to be abolished because it has always been an avenue for many of the lawmakers to siphon public fund.”