My Covenant With Nigerians - BuhariDear Compatriots,
In the past few months that I have traveled round this country on campaigns, I have experienced the sheer beauty of our diversity. From Port Harcourt to Kano, from Abeokuta to Gusau, I experienced first-hand the daily sufferings and struggles of our people. I also experienced the overwhelming desire of our people for change.
When I arrived in Port Harcourt
on the 5th of January to start my campaigns, I was met by our teeming supporters,
who stayed till late in the evening to welcome us. Among them were many young
men and women, who in the few minutes that I shared with them at the airport, made
me to reflect on what kind of future awaits them in our country.
The gestures of 90-year-old Hajia Fadimatu Mai Talle Tara from
Kebbi State and 9-years-old Nicole
Eniiyi Benson from Lagos State, who donated their life-savings to my
campaign, reflect the overwhelming desire of our people for change. In their
gestures, I perceived a longing for the days when honour, national pride and
dignity of labour were the fundamental social principles that governed our
country. As I encountered millions of our youths, who sometimes run for hours
in front of my car and hanging precariously on our campaign vehicles at our
state rallies, I also pondered the enormity of the task ahead. How do we give
jobs to our youth? How do we reform our economy and make it work for every
Nigerian?
I know however, that what we
require to revamp our economy and rebuild our country is our ability to
galvanize all our citizens to believe once again in their government, in their
country and especially, to believe in themselves. This can only happen if we
are able to rebuild the trust and belief that our people used to have in
government, and indeed, in our nation. The leadership that I will provide will
be built on this critical awareness. I intend to lead with integrity and honour
and commit myself totally to everything that is of concern to our people:
security, employment, health, education, good governance and others.
This Covenant is to outline my
agenda for Nigeria and provide a bird’s eye view of how we intend to bring
about the change that our country needs and deserves. This Covenant is derived
from the manifesto of my party, the All Progressives Congress (APC). It
however, represents my pledge to you all when I become your President.
I have no doubt that God being on
our side, with the abiding support of all Nigerians, we shall all witness the
great change that we desire and achieve the Nigeria of our dream.
Thank you
Gen. Muhammadu BUHARI
(Rtd.), GCFR
Presidential
Candidate, APC
Corruption and Governance
No matter how vast our resources,
if they are not efficiently utilized, they will only benefit a privileged few,
leaving the majority in poverty. I believe if Nigeria does not kill corruption;
corruption will kill Nigeria.
I pledge
to:
·
Publicly
declare my assets and liabilities and encourage my political appointees to also
publicly declare their assets and liabilities.
·
Affirm
that our strategy for tackling corruption will not only focus on punishment.
Rather, it will also provide incentives for disclosure and transparency.
·
Show
personal leadership in the war against corruption and also hold all the people
who work with me to account.
·
Inaugurate
the National Council on Procurement as stipulated in the Procurement Act so
that the Federal Executive Council, which has been turned to a weekly session
of contract bazaar, will concentrate on its principal function of policy
making.
·
Review
and implement audit recommendations by Nigeria Extractive Industries
Transparency Initiative (NEITI).
·
Work
with the National Assembly towards the immediate enactment of a Whistle Blower
Act.
·
Work
with the National Assembly to strengthen ICPC and EFCC by guaranteeing
institutional autonomy including financial and prosecutorial independence and
security of tenure of officials.
·
Make
the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) an autonomous and operational agency.
·
Encourage
proactive disclosure of information by government institutions in the spirit of
the Freedom of Information Act.
·
Ensure
all MDAs regularly comply with their accountability responsibilities to Nigerians
through the National Assembly.
·
Work
with the leadership of the National Assembly to cut down the cost of
governance.
·
Present
a national anti-corruption Strategy.
Access to Justice and Respect for
Fundamental Human Rights
One
of the biggest challenges facing Nigeria is building a country that is fair to
all of its citizens; a country in which all individuals feel and know that they
are valued members of society with constitutionally guaranteed rights; a
country that respects human dignity, promotes human development, fosters human
equality and advances human freedom.
I pledge
to:
·
Lead
a government founded on values that promote and protect fundamental human
rights and freedoms. I will promote the supremacy of the Constitution and
the rule of law, affirm separation of the powers of government and support an
independent judiciary.
·
Present
a detailed strategy for protecting the fundamental rights and freedoms provided
for in our Constitution. There will be emphasis on the rights of
vulnerable persons including women, children and persons living with
disabilities as well as access to justice and prisons reforms.
Insurgency and Insecurity
I have had the opportunity to
serve my country in the military up to the highest level, as a Major General
and as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. In the course of my service,
I had defended the territorial integrity of Nigeria. And if called upon to do
so again, I shall rise to the occasion. As a father, I feel the pain of the victims
of insurgency, kidnapping and violence whether they are the widows and orphans
of military, paramilitary or civilians.
I pledge
to:
·
Ensure
that under my watch, no force, external or internal, will occupy even an inch
of Nigerian soil. I will give all it takes to ensure that our girls kidnapped
from Chibok are rescued and reunited with their families.
·
Deliver
a Marshal Plan on insurgency, terrorism, ethnic and religious violence,
kidnapping, rural banditry and ensure that never again will Nigerian children be slaughtered
or kidnapped at will.
·
Boost
the morale of our fighting forces and the generality of Nigerians by leading
from the front as the Commander-in-Chief and not hide in the comfort and
security of Aso Rock.
·
Give
especial attention to the welfare of our armed forces and all other security
personnel and their families, including State-guaranteed life insurance for all
officers and men as well as protect the families of our fallen heroes.
·
Ensure
that acts of heroism and valour in the service to the nation are publicly
recognized and celebrated.
·
Establish
close working relationship with governors of the states affected by insurgency,
with leaders of our neighbouring countries and with leaders around the world to
cooperate in combating insurgency, oil theft, piracy and criminality.
·
Activate
regular meetings of the National Police Council to ensure the discharge of its
true constitutional roles in a transparent and accountable way.
·
Fight
for you, and alongside you. We will fight together to defeat terrorism. But I
will be honest with you about our challenges and I will bear the
responsibilities of my charge. I will not lie to you or exaggerate our
triumphs. My administration will be thoroughly transparent in every step of our
daily struggle and together we will win the war.
Niger Delta
In many years of oil exploration,
the Niger Delta has become perhaps, the world’s worst eco-system, a byword for
environmental degradation, exploitation and diseases. I believe that protecting the
livelihood of our people in the Niger Delta should transcend our interest its oil.
I pledge
to:
·
Commit
myself and my administration to the protection and regeneration of the
environment in the Niger Delta and to ensure that oil companies comply with
global best practices on environmental protection.
·
Sustain
and streamline the human capital development in the Niger Delta, especially
focusing on youth and women.
·
Reform
investment in infrastructural development of the Niger Delta and ensure that
the NDDC is held accountable to its mandate.
Diversity
Nigeria's
greatest asset is her people. My commitment is to invest in our people and
ensure that they have the opportunity to achieve their full potentials and
enjoy the full benefits of their citizenship, regardless of their religion,
region, ethnicity, gender or disability.
I pledge
to:
·
Continually
acknowledge our diversity and consciously promote equality and equity in all
government businesses and activities.
·
Implement
the National Gender Policy including 35% of appointive positions for women.
·
Work
with the National Assembly to pass the National Disability Act and the Equal
Opportunities Bill.
Health
We must give real meaning to the
old saying that Health is Wealth. We must take all possible measures to ensure
that our people stay healthy, but we must also ensure that when they fall ill,
they can get help.
Healthcare in Nigeria is in
crises. Too many people do not get any treatment. For those who do get treated,
all too often, the care they receive is poor. Far too many die from easily
treatable diseases and what should be routine treatment often end in death.
Furthermore, Nigeria is set to miss our MDG targets. The statistics speak for
themselves.
I pledge
to:
·
Unveil
a health sector review policy to ensure efficient and effective management of
our health systems with focus on prevention.
·
Ensure
that no Nigerian will have any reason to go outside the country for medical
treatment.
·
Guarantee
financial sustainability to the health sector and minimum basic health care for
all.
·
Review
occupational health laws and immediately commence enforcement of the provisions
to reduce hazards in the work place.
·
Partner
with State Governments and development partners to ensure all-round
implementation of our primary health plans by expanding access to health
insurance for rural communities.
Education
I believe that our education
system must prepare our children for the responsibilities of citizenship and
prepare our youths to contribute to the development of our country. Therefore, I shall focus on restoring the
lost glory of our education by implementing reforms that will bring quality
back into our schools and position our universities and polytechnics to provide
market-relevant skills to our youths.
I pledge
to:
·
Embark
on a program of mass mobilisation to ensure that all children of school age, no
matter where they may reside in our country, and no matter the social conditions
of their parents, are in school. Working in co-operation with the State
Governments, we shall make the required investments in infrastructure, learning
materials, nutrition and children healthcare. To this end, UBEC Fund will be
reviewed to ensure greater efficiency in utilization.
·
Provide
on-the-job retraining opportunities for existing teachers at both the basic and
secondary levels while providing the right incentives to keep teachers in the
classrooms and attract bright young men and women to take up career in teaching.
·
Work
with other levels of government and through relevant government agencies to
allocate resources to schools while strengthening community participation in
school management.
·
Implement
a comprehensive review of the goal and content of our secondary education to
ensure that it also serves the purpose of skills acquisition and fits purpose.
·
Set
up Colleges of Skills and Enterprise to replace the old technical colleges.
This will be done with direct participation from relevant industry and
professional groups in the private sector. Based on local market demands, each
of the colleges will focus on high job demand sectors of the economy such as
agriculture, ICT, telecommunications, entertainment, construction, oil and gas
and sports.
·
Establish
special purpose fund for a Secondary School level education.
·
Improve
the competitiveness of our universities and polytechnics and position them at
the heart of the national productivity, innovation and enterprise.
·
Pursue
a policy of non-discrimination between the universities and the polytechnics.
Agriculture
Oil has
served our country, but it has also excluded majority of Nigerians from the
mainstream of our economy. I am convinced that our guarantee for inclusive
growth is agriculture.
I pledge to:
- Make agriculture a major focus of the government and lay the institutional foundation to attract large-scale investments and capital to the sector.
- Actively promote a well-coordinated and innovatively funded Youth in Commercial Agribusiness Programme.
- Establish agricultural produce storage, pricing and marketing systems to ensure real commercial value and minimize waste.
- Work with State Governments to launch Agricultural Support Programmes that will drive agricultural land development and mechanization.
- Revamp, revitalize and improve on the national agricultural extension and rural support service system.
- Lay the groundwork for a standardized market uptake and aggregation outlets for specific agricultural produce.
- Revamp the key development banks (Bank of Agriculture, Bank of Industry and Nigeria Import & Export Bank) to fund inclusive agricultural value chain operations
- Liberalise and expand agricultural and rural insurance system with premium subventions support to farmers
- Revamp the agricultural cooperative system to drive rural agriculture and improve stakes for smallholder farmers.
- Develop a system of small-scale irrigation systems to ensure all-year round farming.
- Revamping key agriculture research institutions and deliver their outputs through effective network of extension services.
Management
of the Economy for Shared Prosperity
All Nigerians deserve to benefit
from our collective wealth. We promise not to leave any Nigerian behind in our
determination to create, expand and ensure equitable and effective allocation
of economic opportunities. No matter the amount of wealth we create, it
would be meaningless unless it benefits the majority of our people.
Power
Our failure to ensure a stable
supply of electricity has been an impediment to economic growth, productivity
and national security.
I pledge
to:
·
Address
the gaps in power sector privatization to ensure it serves the needs of our
people.
·
Explore
and develop alternative sources of power such as small, medium and large hydro
plants, wind, coal and solar and other forms of renewable energy to ensure
efficient and affordable power supply.
·
Invest
in technical skills development for efficient management of energy resources.
Sports and Culture
Sports and culture are important
instruments for social cohesion, national integration and promotion of positive
national image. They also provide a strong platform for youth development and
the expression of our abundant creative talents.
I pledge
to:
·
Invest
and encourage investments in both small and large-scale sports facilities to
enable mass participation in sports.
·
Ensure
that participation in sports become a core component of our education at all
levels.
·
Activate
incentives for the private sector to invest in the development of high
performance sports.
Culture
I pledge
to:
·
Support
real investments in the entertainment, arts and creative industries.
·
Strengthen
the regulatory framework to protect and preserve our culture and creative
industry and prevent it from the scourge of piracy.
·
Develop
and strengthen the value link-chain of the culture industry to deepen the
industry and provide jobs
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