Buhari came into power is fast dwindling, his name is
barely pulling the same positive effect it had during the
election period and the reasons are not far fetched.
Battling with age and some health issues that have
seen him leave the country for treatment, President
Buhari has been handed the toughest of tasks.
Having returned from his trip to the United Kingdom, the
Nigerian president must get straight to it regarding the
situation of the country.
Nigerians are looking to see where the country is
headed and their final verdict regarding the APC-led
dispensation will be how Buhari is able to handle three
very pressing issues rocking the nation to its very
foundation.
1. Economic crisis
Trade for many has come to a halt following the
fluctuating value of the Naira. An increase in fuel price
following the removal of subsidy has not made
business any better for Nigerians.
The price of tomatoes and other food items means more
troubles for a teeming masses that have been said to be
living below a dollar per day.
Investigations reveal that the stiff economic situation in
the country has stirred a mass migration of many
people from the Urban cities like Lagos, Abuja and Port
Harcourt. The people cannot cope with the inflation and
many ask if this is the promised change.
There are no jobs, many youths linger in the streets
seeking opportunities that seem never to come. The
APC-government has reportedly made provisions for a
welfare package of N5000 , but the question remains,
what exactly will the monthly stipend do, especially in a
time when prices are skyrocketing?
Salaries are being delayed and retrenchment seem now
to be the order of the day. The Federal Government has
moved to put a stop to the mass retrenchment,
however, how will the firms survive with the number of
staff they have, if business fails to thrive under the
harsh business atmosphere in Nigeria?
President Buhari and his team are of the opinion that
corruption is crippling the economy and the president
has sworn to fight corruption to the latter. However,
there are some who believe that Buhari has made his
anti-corruption war selective .
There are also claims that the president is operating on
a “damaging and outdated monetary policy” , hence the
nose-dive experienced in economic growth.
2. Terror groups
To say that Nigeria has become a nation whose people
live in fear due to terrorism is not out of place. While
the Nigerian army is still engaged in a fierce and almost
never ending battle with Boko Haram in the northeast,
there is a storm welling up within the south-south
region of the country.
The situation within the Niger Delta region has become
so very serious that virtually every other day, a new
militant group emerges with requests of their own, most
of which are totally unrealistic, hence, sending the
message that the chances of really coming to an
agreement with the FG is so slim.
There have been several attempts at negotiating with
the militant groups within the Niger Delta, but no truce
has been reached yet. Some have said that the renewed
violence within the region is due to the loss of Dr
Goodluck Ebele Jonathan in the last presidential
election.
Those who favour this line of thought are of the believe
that the people of the south-south are of the opinion
that the north setup Boko Haram to cause a huge
disruption in the Jonathan-led administration, hence
the Niger Delta will use militants to cause chaos, now
that a northerner is at the helm of affairs.
The Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta
(MEND) recently said that associates of former
president, Goodluck Jonathan are using Niger Delta
Avengers to destabilise the President Muhammadu
Buhar’s led administration.
Mend alleged that one of the most prominent militant
group in the region “the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA), is
the vehicle currently being used by Niger Delta political
elite and associates of former President Goodluck
Jonathan to destabilize President Buhari’s Government.
It was these political juggernauts who are loathe to see
President Buhari gain a foothold in the region.”
Once again, the Niger Delta has gone back to violence
and vandalism, a development which further cripples
the Nigerian economy. The Nigerian National
Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) disclosed that it lost
more than N19.43bn in the month of April, as the
country’s crude oil production dropped from 59.27
million barrels recorded in February to 57.43 million
barrels in March, due to growing acts of pipeline
vandalisation in the Niger Delta region.
The corporation stated this in its Monthly Financial
Report released in Abuja on Thursday where it also
revealed that over 1,500 megawatts of electricity were
lost as a result of the destruction of oil and gas
facilities, adding that the capacity utilisation of the
Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company plummeted
from 25.65 percent in March to 6.36 percent in April.
“The NNPC’s monthly financial and operations report
indicate an operational loss of 19.43bn in April 2016 as
against 18.89bn in the month of March 2016. The
deficit increased by 2.83 per cent in the month of April
2016 due to a slight decline in revenue generation,
which is attributed to the decrease in petroleum product
sales by 7.11 per cent.
“The NPDC’s crude sale for the month is still hampered
by Forcados pipeline vandalism, which continued to
deny the NPDC of monthly crude oil revenue of about
20.0bn,” the report stated.
3. A civil war
The last Nigerian civil war which took place between
July 6 1967 to January 15, 1970 led to the death of over
two million civilians. Once again, the hand writings are
on the wall, heralding that yet another bloody war is
imminent.
Like a movie script, some Igbos have started to toe the
same path which led to the Biafran war. Led by Nnamdi
Kanu, the embattled leader of the Indigenous People of
Biafra (IPOB), the pro-Biafrans have sworn to secede,
claiming that Nigeria has dealt unfairly with the Igbo
people.
Nnamdi Kanu is in custody, faced with charges
bordering on treason, however, the Radio Biafra
director’s fame has grown so much that he is seen by
some as a messiah sent for the liberation of the Igbo
nation, a very deadly ideology.
The massacre and arrest of pro-Biafra agitators has
not in anyway helped issues, it seem like the more
security operatives kill them, the stronger their resolve
to see that Biafra Republic is actualized.
President Buhari is now saddled with the grave task of
ensuring that Nigeria remains united, a task which
many fear he might not be able to execute perfectly.
The battle for the unity of Nigeria gets intense everyday,
especially in a time when the pro-Biafrans have
embraced the Niger-Delta militants and are working in
alliance to see that the country is divided .
Several calls have been made to see that the federal
government sets Nnamdi Kanu free, however, there are
fears that with his widespread fame, the pro-Biafra
leader might become even more deadly than anyone
thought. Analyst have said that the splitting of Nigeria
seem inevitable, some even argue that it will take a
miracle to see Nigeria remain united till the next general
elections.
President Buhari has failed Nigeria is fast become the
song on the lips of many. The Coalition Against Corrupt
Leaders (CACOL) described the one-year of the All
Progressives Congress (APC) as a dismal failure.
The group, through its head, Debo Adeniran, said the
administration spent a full one year giving excuses and
blaming its predecessor for the challenges in the
country.
In the same vein, Chief Adeniyi Akintola (SAN) has said
that President Muhammadu Buhari does not understand
Nigeria. The senior advocate in pushing for the
implementation of the 2014 Confab report said Buhari
“isn’t a politician and he doesn’t understand the
political arithmetic of Nigeria and he doesn’t
understand the political geography.”
Meanwhile, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the minister of
information and culture said President Muhammadu
Buhari’s administration was on track in redeeming its
promises to Nigerians, particularly in the area of job
creation.
The minister said the federal government has
commenced the creation of jobs across the country in
fulfillment of its campaign promises. Speaking on
Monday, June 13, at the south south town hall meeting
in Uyo, Akwa Ibom state, organized by his ministry,
Mohammed said the recruitment of 500,000 teachers
had commenced through the online portal
‘npower.gov.ng’.
He listed other direct job creation and training schemes
that are ongoing which include the N-Power
Knowledge, which is training 25,000 Nigerians in
technology and N-Power Build , which is training
another 75,000 Nigerians in building services.
President Buhari has about three more years to prove to
Nigerians that the choice of the All Progressives
Congress (APC) was not a mistake. These three issues
will form the basis of judgement for the Buhari-led
administration, will Buhari’s government turn the tables
with regards to the economy, can the government keep
her people safe as promised, will Nigeria remain in one
peace, or will the their be an implosion.
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