Buhari in New York
While speaking in New York when he hosted
Nigerian professionals based in the United States of America on Friday,
President Muhammadu Buhari blamed corrupt Nigerian politicians for the
resurgence of militancy in the Niger Delta.
The president said further that it was obvious that those who
fritted away the nation’s resources were determined to sabotage the
current administration, adding that the problems confronting the country
were as a result of the inability to “save for the rainy day”.
“We got into trouble as a country, because we did not save for
the rainy day. For example, between 1999 and 2015, when we produced an
average of 2.1 million barrels of oil per day, and oil prices stood at
an average of $100 per barrel, we did not save, neither did we develop
infrastructure. Suddenly, when we came in 2015, oil prices fell to about
30 dollars per barrel.
“I asked; where are the savings? There were none. Where are the
railways? The roads? Power? None. I further asked; what did we do with
billions of dollars that we made over the years? They said we bought
food. Food with billions of dollars? I did not believe, and still do not
believe.
“In most parts of Nigeria, we eat what we grow. People in the
south eat tubers, those in the north eat grains, which they plant, and
those constitute over 60 per cent of what we eat. So, where did the
billions of dollars go? We did a lot of damage to ourselves by not
developing infrastructure when we had the money.
“Those who stole Nigeria dry are not happy. They recruited the
militants against us in the Niger Delta, and began to sabotage oil
infrastructure. We lose millions of barrels per day, at a time when
every dollar we can earn, counts. It is a disgrace that a minimum of 27
states, out of 36 that we have in Nigeria, can’t pay salaries,” he said.
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