We’re mindful of the economic hardship facing you, Osinbajo tells Nigerians

Acting President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday said that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal government was not unaware of the sacrifices Nigerians have made owing to the economic hardship in the country.

He stated this during his Democracy Day broadcast, where he recalled that the administration outlined three areas including security, corruption and the economy for immediate intervention on assumption of office.

He said, “Admittedly, the economy has proven to be the biggest challenge of all. Let me first express just how concerned we have been, since this administration took office, about the impact of the economic difficulties on our citizens.

“Through no fault of theirs, some companies shut down their operations, others downsized; people lost jobs, had to endure rising food prices.

“In some states, civil servants worked months on end without the guarantee of a salary, even as rents and school fees and other expenses continued to show up like clockwork.

“We have been extremely mindful of the many sacrifices that you have had to make over the last few years. And for this reason this administration’s work on the economic front has been targeted at a combination of short-term interventions to cushion the pain, as well as medium to long term efforts aimed at rebuilding an economy that is no longer helplessly dependent on the price of crude oil.

“Those short-term interventions include putting together a series of bailout packages for our State Governments, to enable them bridge their salary shortfalls – an issue the President has consistently expressed his concerns about. We also began the hard work of laying out a framework for our Social Intervention Programme, the most ambitious in the history of the country.”

On the fight against graft, Osinbajo who said the fight appeared to have been slow because of the slow nature of the nation’s justice system; assured that that all hands are on the deck to make sure that all stolen funds are recovered and culprits prosecuted and sentenced.

Speaking on government efforts on security, Osinbajo said the North East where the Boko Haram sect openly challenged the nation’s sovereignty were clear enough for all to see in respect to what government has achieved in the area of security.

“The positive results are clear for all to see. In the last two years, close to one million displaced persons have returned home, 106 of our daughters from Chibok have regained their freedom, after more than two years in captivity, in addition to the thousands of other captives who have since tasted freedom.

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“Schools, hospitals and businesses are springing back to life across the Northeast, especially in Borno State, the epicentre of the crisis. Farmers are returning to the farms from which they fled in the wake of Boko Haram. Finally, our people are getting a chance to begin the urgent task of rebuilding their lives.

“Across the country, in the Niger Delta, and in parts of the North Central region, we are engaging with local communities, to understand their grievances, and to create solutions that respond to these grievances adequately and enduringly.

“President Buhari’s New Vision for the Niger Delta is a comprehensive peace, security and development plan that will ensure that the people benefit fully from the wealth of the region, and we have seen to it that it is the product of deep and extensive consultations, and that it has now moved from idea to execution.

“More recent threats to security such as the herdsmen clashes with farmers in many parts of the country sometimes leading to fatalities and loss of livelihoods and property have also preoccupied our security structures.

“We are working with state governments, and tasking our security agencies with designing effective strategies and interventions that will bring this menace to an end. We are determined to ensure that anyone who uses violence, or carries arms without legal authority is apprehended and sanctioned,” he said.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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