President Muhammadu Buhari has assured Nigerians that his administration will judiciously use national resources for infrastructure development.
The President gave the commitment on Wednesday while receiving residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), who visited him on Christmas homage at the State House.
President Buhari thanked Nigerians for the understanding and support so far given his administration.
He expressed the belief that Nigerians would not worry their leaders if government makes basic infrastructure available.
Buhari said: ‘‘This administration sincerely believes that if you get infrastructure right, most Nigerians will mind their own businesses. They may not even care who is in government.
‘‘But when you deny them infrastructural facilities then there is nothing they can do. But I can assure you that I thank Nigerians very much from the bottom of my heart.
‘‘When I travelled to all the 36 states before the elections, what I personally observed and the number of Nigerians that turned up in every State to see and listen to me, are more than what anybody can pay or force. What I saw made me believe that the majority of Nigerians understand and sympathize with me”, he said.
The President used the occasion to reassure Nigerians that he was conscious of his duty as president, saying: ‘‘I swore to hold this office in accordance with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and God willing, I will follow the system diligently to the end of my term and I hope history will be kind to me and Nigerians.’’
Leader of the delegation, who is the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mohammed Bello, in his remarks, said they were in the Presidential Villa to pay Christmas homage and to thank President Buhari for the support given to the FCT.
His words: “We thank God for bringing us this far, we started 2019 with a lot of hope and a lot of challenges. A year ago when we came, we had elections before us. We were faced with a lot of challenges from within and without from parties that never wished the nation well.
”By the grace of God campaigns were completed successfully, by the grace of God inauguration was done successfully, by the grace of God we celebrated June 12 as our new Democracy Day.
“All these many people thought they could not have come to pass. By the grace of God the nineth Assembly was inaugurated and the leadership of the assembly were elected, by the grace of God the budget was passed and signed into law. All these we need to reflect and thank God for all we have been able to achieve under your able leadership.
The minister who noted that despite the security challenges, Abuja has been relatively peaceful, commended the security chiefs for a job well done.
Speaking to journalists after the ceremony, the Minister of Nigeria Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, said President Buhari deserved commendation from Nigerians for reviving the country’s infrastructure.
He also noted that the present National Assembly was more focused than the last one, citing the speedy screening of ministers, political appointees and the signing of the 2020 budget into law as some of their achievements in 2019.
