Below is the full text of
President’s Muhammadu Buhari’s speech at his inauguration.
The
President set the tone for his government with that speech and compared to
others before it there are no seven-point agendas and servant- leader images.
The president was direct and touched on all our pain points as a nation
including tribalism. With the inaugural address, he has set a tone for his
government and highlighted below are parts of the speech that resonate and would like to
see execution. Remarks in bold mine.
I would like to thank
President Goodluck Jonathan for his display of statesmanship in setting a
precedent for us that has now made our people proud to be Nigerians wherever
they are. With the support and cooperation he has given to the transition
process, he has made it possible for us to show the world that despite the
perceived tension in the land we can be a united people capable of doing what
is right for our nation. Together we co-operated to surprise the world that had
come to expect only the worst from Nigeria. I hope this act of graciously
accepting defeat by the outgoing President will become the standard of
political conduct in the country.I would like to thank the
millions of our supporters who believed in us even when the cause seemed
hopeless. I salute their resolve in waiting long hours in rain and hot sunshine
to register and cast their votes and stay all night if necessary to protect and
ensure their votes count and were counted. I thank those who
tirelessly carried the campaign on the social media. At the same time, I thank
our other countrymen and women who did not vote for us but contributed to make
our democratic culture truly competitive, strong and definitive.I thank all of you.Having just a few minutes ago sworn on the Holy Book, I
intend to keep my oath and serve as President to all Nigerians. I belong to
everybody and I belong to nobody(meaning: I acknowledge that individuals
have contributed to my campaign and election but I would not be held ransom by
anyone). A few people have privately voiced fears that on coming
back to office I shall go after them. These fears are groundless. There will be
no paying off old scores. The past is prologue(There will be no witch-hunting).Our neighbours in the
Sub-region and our African brethren should rest assured that Nigeria under our
administration will be ready to play any leadership role that Africa expects of
it. Here I would like to thank the governments and people of Cameroon, Chad and
Niger for committing their armed forces to fight Boko Haram in Nigeria.I also wish to assure the
wider international community of our readiness to cooperate and help to combat
threats of cross-border terrorism, sea piracy, refugees and boat people,
financial crime, cyber crime, climate change, the spread of communicable
diseases and other challenges of the 21st century.At home we face enormous challenges. Insecurity, pervasive
corruption, the hitherto unending and seemingly impossible fuel and power
shortages are the immediate concerns.(There
are many issues we grapple with as a nation and world wide examples listed above; the primary actions of this administration will be to fix fuel and power
issues). We are
going to tackle them head on. Nigerians will not regret that they have
entrusted national responsibility to us. We must not succumb to hopelessness
and defeatism. We can fix our problems.In recent times Nigerian
leaders appear to have misread our mission. Our founding fathers, Mr Herbert
Macauley, Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Alhaji Ahmadu Bello, the
Sardauna of Sokoto, Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Malam Aminu Kano, Chief J.S.
Tarka, Mr Eyo Ita, Chief Denis Osadeby, Chief Ladoke Akintola and their
colleagues worked to establish certain standards of governance. They might have
differed in their methods or tactics or details, but they were united in
establishing a viable and progressive country. Some of their successors behaved
like spoilt children breaking everything and bringing disorder to the house.Furthermore, we as
Nigerians must remind ourselves that we are heirs to great civilizations: Shehu
Othman Dan fodio’s caliphate, the Kanem Borno Empire, the Oyo Empire, the Benin
Empire and King Jaja’s formidable domain. The blood of those great ancestors
flow in our veins. What is now required is to build on these legacies, to
modernize and uplift Nigeria.Daunting as the task may
be it is by no means insurmountable. There is now a national consensus that our
chosen route to national development is democracy. To achieve our objectives we
must consciously work the democratic system. The Federal Executive under my watch will not seek to
encroach on the duties and functions of the Legislative and Judicial arms of
government. The law enforcing authorities will be charged to operate within the
Constitution. We shall rebuild and reform the public service to become more
effective and more serviceable. We shall charge them to apply themselves with
integrity to stabilize the system.For their part the legislative arm must keep to their brief
of making laws, carrying out over-sight functions and doing so expeditiously.
The judicial system needs reform to cleanse itself from its immediate past. The
country now expects the judiciary to act with dispatch on all cases especially
on corruption, serious financial crimes or abuse of office. It is only when the
three arms act constitutionally that government will be enabled to serve the
country optimally and avoid the confusion all too often bedeviling governance
today.( I
regard this part of his speech as important because the National Assembly has
shirked in its duties and though the Judiciary has made efforts at regaining
its image as the defender of Justice, there is more to do be done as Lady
Justice in recent times has been a respecter of persons, lenient with the
wealthy and punitive with the poor)Elsewhere relations
between Abuja and the States have to be clarified if we are to serve the
country better. Constitutionally there are limits to powers of each of the
three tiers of government but that should not mean the Federal
Government should fold its arms and close its eyes to what is going on in the
states and local governments.(Yes!)
Not least the operations of the Local
Government Joint Account. While
the Federal Government can not interfere in the details of its operations it
will ensure that the gross corruption at the local level is checked.( The local government is the first level
of government citizens have and it has not been impactful. In my experience,
local roads are not built, instead, citizens are levied unnecessarily and the
cry is that they have no access to funds routed through the state government) As far as the constitution allows me I
will try to ensure that there is responsible and accountable governance at all
levels of government in the country. For I will not have kept my own trust with
the Nigerian people if I allow others abuse theirs under my watch.However, no matter how
well organized the governments of the federation are they can not succeed
without the support, understanding and cooperation of labour unions, organized
private sector, the press and civil society organizations. I appeal to
employers and workers alike to unite in raising productivity so that everybody
will have the opportunity to share in increased prosperity. The Nigerian press
is the most vibrant in Africa. My appeal to the media today – and this includes
the social media – is to exercise its considerable powers with responsibility
and patriotism.My appeal for unity is
predicated on the seriousness of the legacy we are getting into. With depleted
foreign reserves, falling oil prices, leakages and debts the Nigerian economy
is in deep trouble and will require careful management to bring it round and to
tackle the immediate challenges confronting us, namely; Boko Haram, the Niger
Delta situation, the power shortages and unemployment especially among young
people. For the longer term we have to improve the standards of our education.
We have to look at the whole field of medicare. We have to upgrade our
dilapidated physical infrastructure.The most immediate is Boko Haram’s insurgency. Progress has
been made in recent weeks by our security forces but victory can not be
achieved by basing the Command and Control Centre in Abuja. The command centre
will be relocated to Maiduguri and remain until Boko Haram is completely
subdued. But we can not claim to have defeated Boko Haram without rescuing the
Chibok girls and all other innocent persons held hostage by insurgents.(Great!
This tells me, this government is serious about the insurgency and tells the
Military command that too. The government is being tested. There have been
attacks in Maiduguri on the 30th and 31st)This government will do
all it can to rescue them alive. Boko Haram is a typical example of small fires
causing large fires. An eccentric and unorthodox preacher with a tiny following
was given posthumous fame and
following by his extra judicial murder at the hands of the police.(Calling Mohammed Yusuf’s murder what it
is! )Since then through official bungling, negligence, complacency or
collusion Boko Haram became a terrifying force taking tens of thousands of
lives and capturing several towns and villages covering swathes of Nigerian
sovereign territory.Boko Haram is a mindless,
godless group who are as far away from Islam as one can think of. At the end of
the hostilities when the group is subdued the Government intends to commission
a sociological study to determine its origins, remote and immediate causes of
the movement, its sponsors, the international connections to ensure that
measures are taken to prevent a reccurrence of this evil. For now the Armed
Forces will be fully charged with prosecuting the fight against Boko haram. We
shall overhaul the rules of engagement to avoid human rights violations in
operations. We shall improve operational and legal mechanisms so that
disciplinary steps are taken against proven human right violations by the Armed
Forces.Boko Haram is not only
the security issue bedeviling our country. The spate of kidnappings, armed
robberies, herdsmen/farmers clashes, cattle rustlings all help to add to the
general air of insecurity in our land. We are going to erect and maintain an
efficient, disciplined people – friendly and well – compensated security forces
within an over – all security architecture.The amnesty programme in
the Niger Delta is due to end in December, but the Government intends to invest
heavily in the projects, and programmes currently in place. I call on the leadership
and people in these areas to cooperate with the State and Federal Government in
the rehabilitation programmes which will be streamlined and made more
effective. As ever, I am ready to listen to grievances of my fellow Nigerians.
I extend my hand of fellowship to them so that we can bring peace and build
prosperity for our people.No single cause can be
identified to explain Nigerian’s poor economic performance over the years than
the power situation. It is a national shame that an economy of 180 million
generates only 4,000MW, and distributes even less. Continuous tinkering with
the structures of power supply and distribution and close on $20b expanded
since 1999 have only brought darkness, frustration, misery, and resignation
among Nigerians. We will not allow this to go on. Careful studies are under way
during this transition to identify the quickest, safest and most cost-effective
way to bring light and relief to Nigerians.Unemployment, notably
youth un-employment features strongly in our Party’s Manifesto. We intend to
attack the problem frontally through revival of agriculture, solid minerals
mining as well as credits to small and medium size businesses to kick – start
these enterprises. We shall quickly examine the best way to revive major industries
and accelerate the revival and development of our railways, roads and general
infrastructure.Your Excellencies, My
fellow Nigerians I can not recall when Nigeria enjoyed so much goodwill abroad
as now. The messages I received from East and West, from powerful and small
countries are indicative of international expectations on us. At home the newly
elected government is basking in a reservoir of goodwill and high expectations.
Nigeria therefore has a window of opportunity to fulfill our long – standing
potential of pulling ourselves together and realizing our mission as a great
nation.Our situation somehow
reminds one of a passage in Shakespeare’s Julius CeasarThere is a tide in the
affairs of men which,taken at the flood, leads
on to fortune;Omitted, all the voyage
of their life,Is bound in shallows and
miseries.We have an opportunity.
Let us take it.Thank youMuhammadu BuhariPresident Federal
Republic of NIGERIA andCommander in-chief-of the
Armed forces
The President set the tone for his government with that speech and compared to others before it there are no seven-point agendas and servant- leader images. The president was direct and touched on all our pain points as a nation including tribalism. With the inaugural address, he has set a tone for his government and highlighted below are parts of the speech that resonate and would like to see execution. Remarks in bold mine.
