Nigerians have begun a process of countdown on the exit of President Muhammadu Buhari at the end of his second tenure in the next 10 months. Several stakeholders groaning over the hardship and sufferings in the country, have listed 62 promises, they said President Buhari made before assuming office over seven years ago but failed to fulfil any. The stakeholders challenged anyone who disputes any item on the list to provide facts to prove them wrong.
According to the stakeholders: “We have on record a total of 62 promises which Buhari made to Nigerians if elected President.
“Out of the 62 promises, none has been fulfilled.
“If there is anyone that you feel that Buhari has achieved, point it out and support your claim with facts and let’s have a debate with you on that.
“If not, then we can agree that Buhari has not ONLY failed but failed woefully and anyone supporting him or APC government does not care about your good and the good of your children.”
The 62 unfulfilled or failed promises were listed as follows:
- Ban on government officials from going abroad for medical treatment: FAILED.
- State and community policing: FAILED.
- Public declaration of assets and liabilities: FAILED.
- Introduction of National Gender Policy and offer of 35 per cent appointment to women: FAILED.
- Creation of three million jobs per year: FAILED.
- The revival of Ajaokuta Steel Company: FAILED.
- Creation of a Social Welfare Programme where a minimum of N5,000 would be paid to 25 million poorest and most vulnerable citizens: FAILED.
- Building one of the fastest-growing emerging economies in the world with a real GDP growth averaging 10 per cent annually. FAILED.
- Generation, transmission, and distribution of at least 20,000 MW of electricity within four years and increasing to 50,000 MW with a view to achieving 24/7 uninterrupted power supply within 10 years. FAILED.
- Empowerment scheme to employ 740,000 graduates across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. FAILED.
- Payment of allowances to the discharged but unemployed Youth Corps members for 12 months while on the skills and entrepreneurial development programme. FAILED.
- Establishment of a free-tuition and scholarship scheme for pupils who have shown exceptional aptitude in science subjects at O/Levels to study ICT-related courses. FAILED.
- Creation of 720,000 jobs by the 36 states in the federation per annum (20,000 per state) FAILED.
- Creating additional middle-class of at least 2 million new homeowners in our first year in government and 1 million annually thereafter. FAILED.
- Creating a National Conflict Resolution Commission to prevent, mitigate and resolve civil conflicts within the polity. FAILED.
- Building six centres of excellence to address the needs of special education – There is no evidence the government has initiated the building of the centres of excellence for special education in any zone in the country. FAILED.
- Establishing a national mortgage system to lend funds at single-digit interest rates for prospective homeowners. FAILED.
- Creating a national infrastructural development bank to provide loans at nominal interest rates exclusively for this sector – FAILED
- Raising life expectancy level by an additional 10 years on average – FAILED.
- Construction of 3,000km of superhighways with service trunks – FAILED.
- Ensuring a minimum number of seats in the National Assembly are reserved for women. FAILED.
- Making free education at primary, secondary and tertiary levels for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and education – FAILED.
- Establishing a single ECOWAS currency by 2020 under Nigeria’s leadership: FAILED.
- Making naira stable at the international market – FAILED.
- Early identification of talents and making them participate in games locally and internationally to enable them to become professionals – FAILED.
- Giving up to 20 per cent of the national budget for the educational sector while also making substantial investments in training quality teachers at all levels – FAILED.
The government has failed in this promise. It has never allocated up to 10 per cent of the national budget for education since it came into power. Currently, university lecturers are on strike while their Polytechnic counterparts have threatened to also embark on industrial action.
The situation of the Country’s education sector is far from FAILED.
- Establishing world-class sports academy and training institutes- FAILED.
- Amending the Nigerian Constitution to ensure devolution of powers, duties, and responsibilities to states in order to entrench true Federalism – FAILED.
- Establishing a strong business relationship with top emerging economies including Brazil, Russia, India, and China (BRIC) and other strategic partners around the world – FAILED.
- Consolidation of INEC to reduce and if possible, eliminate electoral malpractices in the country’s political space – FAILED.
- Implementing a full erosion and shoreline protection across the country – FAILED.
- Protecting the rights of women as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution – FAILED.
While the government has not taken any concrete action to protect the rights of women in the country, it has failed to defend women whose rights are grossly violated.
For instance, Eunice Olawale, who was killed in Abuja while preaching and Bridget Agbahime and Deborah Emmanuel killed by mobs in Kano and Katsina, respectively, for alleged blasphemy. Many cases of women’s rights violation still abound across the country, including their ridiculous sentencing to the kitchen and the “other room”. FAILED.
- Boosting the Nigerian football league to make it as competitive as other national leagues – FAILED.
- Balancing the economy across the regions and the creation of six Regional Economic Development Agencies (REDAs) to drive competitiveness – FAILED.
- Full implementation of the National Identification Scheme – FAILED.
- Development of NATIONAL sanitation plans to clean up the country – FAILED
- Creation of a Commodity Board to ensure the best pricing for selected crops and facilitate storage of agricultural products – FAILED.
- Providing full disclosure to the media of government contracts over N100 million, prior to award and during implementation at a regular interval – FAILED.
- Funding Nollywood to fully develop into world class movie industry so that it can compete favorably on good terms with Hollywood and Bollywood – FAILED.
- Amending the Constitution to remove immunity from prosecution for elected officers in a criminal case – FAILED
- Making policies to halt the pollution of Coastal Lines, Rivers and Waterways in the Niger Delta and other parts of the Country – FAILED.
- Reforming and Strengthening the Justice system for efficient administration and dispensation of justice with the creation of Special Courts for accelerated hearing of Corruption, Drug Trafficking, Terrorism and Ancillary Cases – FAILED.
- Increasing National Health expenditure per person per annum from less than N10, 000 to about N50,000 – FAILED.
- Reducing maternal mortality by more than 70 per cent within four years – FAILED.
- Abolition of State of Origin and replacing it with State of Residence to ensure Nigerians are Nigerians first, before anything else – FAILED.
- Creating a crime squad to combat terrorism, kidnapping, armed robbery, militancy, ethno-religious and communal clashes in the country – FAILED.
- Making Information Technology, Manufacturing, Agriculture and Entertainment key drivers of our economy – FAILED.
- Creating a N300 billion Regional Growth Fund (Average of N50 billion in each Geo-political zone) to be managed by the REDAs – FAILED.
- Amending the Constitution and the Land Use Act to create freehold/leasehold interests in land along with matching grants for states to create a nationwide electronic land title register on a state-by-state basis – FAILED
- Building of at least one functioning airport in each of the 36 States – FAILED.
- A constitutional amendment to oblige Local Governments in the Country to publish minutes of their Meetings, Service performance data and spending over N10 million – FAILED.
- Construction of an airport in Ekiti State – FAILED.
- Reduction of HIV/AIDs infection rate by 50 percent and other infectious diseases by 75 percent – FAILED.
- Ensuring that political officer holders earn salaries and emoluments as determined and approved by the Revenue Mobilization and Fiscal Commission (RMFAC). FAILED.
- Ending Gas fIaring and ensuring sales of at least half of gas produced within the country – FAILED.
- Prompt passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) and addressing local content issues in the oil and gas sector – FAILED.
- Establishment of at least six new universities of science and technology with satellite campuses in states of the Federation – FAILED.
- Increasing the number of doctors from 19 per 1000 population to 50 per 1000 – FAILED.
- Strengthening operational and legal instruments to discipline members of the Armed Forces over confirmed cases of human rights violations – FAILED.
- Free maternal and child healthcare services – FAILED.
- Upgrading all Federal Government-owned hospitals to world-class facilities within five years – FAILED.
- The defeat of Boko Haram and the Rehabilitation and Reintegration of repentant insurgents – FAILED.
The second tenure of President Buhari will end on May 28, as the new president will assume office on May 29, 2023.
The 2023 general elections will commence in February.