By Bekeh Utietiang
President Muhammadu Buhari and his ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) party have no plans on how to rescue Nigeria from its economic malaise. Since they came into power in May of 2015, they have gradually reneged for on all the promises they made to Nigerians and have used the anti-corruption crusade as a way of distracting Nigerians from the serious problems that the country is facing. Fighting corruption is a noble and courageous act in a country like Nigeria where it has eaten deep into its fiber. As far back as 1984, the esteem Nigerian writer, Chinua Achebe had written in his book, The Trouble With Nigeria that, “Keeping an average Nigerian from being corrupt is like keeping a goat from eating yam.” I dare to say that, corruption is far worse today than it was in the 1980s. Today, it has become institutionalized and cuts across the socio-political, economic and even religious sectors of the country. Prophecies and healings are backed by money (that is for another article).

The problem with Buhari’s anti-corruption tactics is that they are not sincere. When Nigerians who were fed up with the impunity of the former government of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) went out to vote for Buhari because they believed he would clean up the system, I was skeptical then and I am now that he has the will power to fight corruption. It is impossible to advance yourself as an anti-corruption crusader when the major benefactors of your campaign are among the most corrupt Nigerians. After his election, Buhari gave voice to these people by appointing them to his cabinet and other governmental parastatals. Their anti-corruption agenda has been reduced to a witchhunt of the members of the opposition party, PDP. About nine months after Buhari was sworn in as President of Nigeria, no member of the APC has been arrested or prosecuted. Yet, a substantial number of the members of the ruling APC were formerly members of PDP who enriched themselves from the government coffers during the sixteen years that PDP ruled Nigeria.

During the electioneering campaign, I had raised the issue of Buhari’s sponsors with a friend who is his ardent supporter. He assured me that Buhari needed the money in order to be elected and that once Buhari gets into power, he was going to turn against these individuals. That has not been the case. Rather, they have been rewarded. If Buhari needs his war against corruption to be taken seriously, he needs to first clean up his own house, the All Peoples Congress. History tells us that it is possible to do this. In 1990, Kim Young-Sam the opposition leader of South Korea merged his Democratic Reunification Party with the ruling and corrupt Democratic Justice Party to form the Democratic Liberal Party. Running under the platform of this new party, he won the presidency in the 1992 elections. He served for only one term and used that opportunity to clean up corruption in South Korea. He arrested his two predecessors, Roh Tae-woo (1988-1993) and Chun Doo-hwan (1980-1988). Roh was sentenced to seventeen years in prison and Chun was sentenced to life in prison. Kim Young-Sam’s anticorruption crusade did not spare his own son. In 1997, Kim Hyon Chol, his son known as the “Crown Prince” was indicted for bribery and tax evasion. He was sentenced to three years in prison. That is what a transparent and sincere anti-corruption agenda should like. South Korea, like Nigeria had just gone through several years of military dictatorships and former dictators turning elected presidents.

When is Buhari’s government turning its anti-corruption searchlight on members of the All Peoples Congress? Until then, he needs to stop distracting Nigerians with his anti-corruption war and focus on the economy that is falling apart under the weight of his ineptitude.

www.huffingtonpost.com/bekeh-utietiang/president-muhammadu-buhar_b_9360268.html

Zombies will com and give u a hundred and one reasons why dis is wailing is unjustified and sponsored by d PDP... D corruption fight na jus for mouth. Its more of a pillow fight and media war

www.nairaland.com/attachments/2571027_buharipoker_jpeg226b8276c6a021ac1a07f80d2f9b8246


www.nairaland.com/attachments/2630292_canitbe_jpg6ad419494ca1e96dd2dd8e42a498346b


www.nairaland.com/attachments/3040085_abachaaa_jpegb9b6ace1c002846314b86b3375f466a0


www.nairaland.com/attachments/3441929_img20160227001458_jpeg3fecf627d6b5447631b348f011e59b5a

Op, lafiyan ka ko??

Nigeria has gone backward
From 2012-2016 it is clear to see that APC leadership has always and is still very clueless.


GDP per capita was at an all-time high of in 2014 at 3,182.00 now it is at 1,976.00
Investment rose 2.8 to 13.4 and is now at -1.6 %
Industrial production went from 1.5 to 5.5 3 years with GEJ and in two years with Buhari it is at -1. 6 %

Trade Balance (USD billion) 40.9 43.8 21.0 -6.4 -0.5
Exports (USD billion) 94.3 95.1 82.6 45.9 34.7 no data
Imports (USD billion) 53.4 51.4 61.6 52.3 35.2
Exports (annual variation in %) -2.9 0.8 -13.2 -44.4

The change has happened in a way that will soon take decades to fix.

Nbote:
Zombies will com and give u a hundred and one reasons why dis is wailing is unjustified and sponsored by d PDP... D corruption fight na jus for mouth. Its more of a pillow fight and media war

The proof is in the numbers when GEJ took over the country was progressing like never before, ever since the silent coup by APC, year to year it is declining at a rapid rate.

Samusu:
Op, lafiyan ka ko??

Theirs is all about being in power. When Buhari wept in the public after losing an election some years back, some undiscerning minds fell for it, "O, he loves his fatherland" Whereas all I could see then was a little child who's crying because his father didn't buy him a (real) gun. Now Buhari finally got the 'gun' and he's killed our economy!

president buhari is a deceit and continuum of the corrupt ridden Nigeria system whose foundation he contributed in laying.
the dullard is a sham

lonecatt:
president buhari is a deceit and continuum of the corrupt ridden Nigeria system whose foundation he contributed in laying.
the dullard is a sham

a big fraud!

dodelight:
Theirs is all about being in power. When Buhari wept in the public after losing an election some years back, some undiscerning minds fell for it, "O, he loves his fatherland" Whereas all I could see then was a little child who's crying because his father didn't buy him a (real) gun. Now Buhari finally got the 'gun' and he's killed our economy!

Not only the economic welfare but even our reputation as the fastest growing country to do business, our relationship with China is in the toliet because he wanted to please the West who don't give a rats nyash about us.

It was very sad watching Nigerians defend Buhari anti corruption toga pre 2015, i asked myself, is this not the same man accused of pilfering 2.8 Billion Dollars oil money while he was at the helm of affairs in NOC, is he not the same man that his ADC sneaked bags of money through the airport for while he held sway as president, is he not the same man who mismanaged PTF? Nigerians were blinded and just wanted Jonathan out. His anti corruption principles do not hold water to me, he is just a very humble and secretive person who knows how to hide his loot, a man who could not afford to pay for electoral form but could afford his children fees in Surrey running to hundreds of thousand of pounds. Since there is no small or big corruption, i put it to you General Buhari, you are as corrupt as the men you have accused, jailed or reprimanded for corruption. By next year, we would provide a documentary of the monumental looting in your tenure.

If Buhari and his clueless team hadn't ran the economy into the Atlantic ocean, I would not have minded his one sided anti-corruption fight and media prosecutions