President-elect and the citizens’ expectations
By Usman Muhammad Salihu.
Nigeria as a country is bedevilled with so many challenges and problems ranging from insecurity to inflation which causes a high cost of living, and the recent introduction of a cashless policy aimed at boosting the economy of the country but somehow causing life more difficult, especially to the masses, among other contributing factors.
Insecurity, especially the issue of Boko Haram militants (in the North East and some parts of north-west and north Central), where almost on daily basis bomb blasts occurred, hundreds of people killed and taken thousands into captivity, among others, were the major factors that force many Nigerians to preach the gospel of change in the year 2015 which after the then general election produces the incumbent president Muhammadu Buhari.
As time went on, Muhammadu Buhari’s administration did quite an impressive performance in curtailing the menace of Boko Haram, but yet, the rising of another phenomenon which is banditry.
Bandit came as a result of the farmers-herders crisis, which later escalated to another phenomenon currently causing serious and harmful effects on our economic, political and social development.
These bandits were known to be riding into villages on motorcycles in order to loot, rape and kidnap the inhabitants of such villages as well as kill anyone who resisted.
Kidnapping nowadays has become a very lucrative venture, especially in north-western Nigeria. Between 2011 when the problem started to 2022, Nigerians paid millions of naira to free family members, friends, and relatives and in most cases, village inhabitants have to forcefully made by these bandits to pay a certain amount to them in order for the inhabitants to stay in their villages and carry out their day-to-day activities.
Moreso, the issue of the educational sector revamping, the ASUU’s eight months strike is still afresh in the minds of fellow Nigerians, especially students. Without revamping this sector, the future of our youths is at stake. As the saying goes, to kill a nation is to deny it education.
On the economy of the state, is there any nation that exists without an economy? The administration to come must have to do the needful to avoid the policies that may cripple the country’s economic sector, and this can only be done through forming a committee of economic experts who will be advising the government and leading the economic development aspect of the country.
The judicial system has to be allowed to carry out its full function without hindrance or interference from the government. This will pave the way for the sector to maintain its full function and possibly speedy arraignments and passing judgements effectively, and aside from that, it helps the government in the fight against corruption.
To whom much is given, much is also expected.
The 2023 general election is one of a kind, where the issue of vote buying was drastically reduced to a minimal level. This is saying that Nigerians voted for the President-elect based on their expectations of him hence being ready to face the numerous problems of the citizens and find out their solutions.
We pray that the president-elect’s campaign slogan ‘RENEWED HOPE’ will indeed renew the already lost hope of Nigerians.
Usman Muhammad Salihu writes from Mass Communication Department, Abubakar Tatari Ali Polytechnic, Bauchi, Bauchi state. He can be reached via muhammadu5363@gmail.com.
