The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Chief John Oyegun, has lamented that the General Muhammadu Buhari administration will need at least N4.1 trillion to hit the ground running when it would have been inaugurated on May 29th 2015.
Speaking at a retreat organized for senators-elect on the platform of the APC in Abuja, Oyegun urged the senators to brace up for the challenges ahead.
He said the administration would need, from the first day of its inception, a total of N4.1 trillion for sundry expenses, including oil subsidy payment, salaries arrears at federal and state levels and debt servicing.
“Put this against the background of the falling oil prices, the unprecedented N60-billion-dollar debt which the outgoing government has left for the incoming one, the largely depleted Excess Crude Account (ECA), the 60 billion dollars that have been lost in the last four years to crude oil theft (and which are perhaps still being lost as we speak), the need to rapidly create jobs for our teeming army of unemployed youths, enhance the security of the citizenry and improve the economy, and you will begin to understand the enormity of the challenges ahead.
“This is not a lamentation forum, but still, we must tell ourselves the truth about the state of the nation, and the expectations of our people,” he said.
Oyegun said their election to the National Assembly was a call for service which they must take seriously in order to serve the people of Nigeria.
“Unparalleled commitment, uncommon patriotism, unprecedented hard work and indeed, a reservoir of your innermost strength will be required, as our party takes the centre stage in the next few days and begins to implement its programmes for the benefit of the long suffering people. Make no mistake about it, the days ahead will be tough, and this is not crying wolf,” he said.
He said the senators-elect would be called upon to take extraordinary actions to address the extraordinary challenges that confront the nation.
“The incoming president, more than anyone else, needs the support and cooperation of the eighth National Assembly to fulfill his campaign promises to Nigerians.
You may be required to pass important bills at very short notices. This will not be unprecedented but will require a buy-in to the programmes of the president and the party and a willingness to work with him and the party for the benefit of all Nigerians. The demands on you will be tasking, but you are up to the task,” Oyegun said.
He however said the party has the numbers, even though it believed that a bipartisan effort would be a better deal.
He said the senators-elect must share in the dreams of the president and the party to make the country great again.
“May I also remind you that all eyes will be on our party - and by extension on all of you - to see if our government will walk its talk in terms of running a lean and effective government, one that eschews waste, corruption and indiscipline, and one that will harness the nation’s human, material and natural resources for the wellbeing of the people.
“There is no magic wand to make our economy better overnight. Against the realities on the ground, some of which I listed earlier, reviving our economy will be a long and tortuous process. Bold decisions will need to be taken, and this can only be possible if there is a synergy among our party, the National Assembly and the president. We know you will not fail us, and you will not fail Nigerians,” he added.
Source: Sunday Trust
Speaking at a retreat organized for senators-elect on the platform of the APC in Abuja, Oyegun urged the senators to brace up for the challenges ahead.
He said the administration would need, from the first day of its inception, a total of N4.1 trillion for sundry expenses, including oil subsidy payment, salaries arrears at federal and state levels and debt servicing.
“Put this against the background of the falling oil prices, the unprecedented N60-billion-dollar debt which the outgoing government has left for the incoming one, the largely depleted Excess Crude Account (ECA), the 60 billion dollars that have been lost in the last four years to crude oil theft (and which are perhaps still being lost as we speak), the need to rapidly create jobs for our teeming army of unemployed youths, enhance the security of the citizenry and improve the economy, and you will begin to understand the enormity of the challenges ahead.
“This is not a lamentation forum, but still, we must tell ourselves the truth about the state of the nation, and the expectations of our people,” he said.
Oyegun said their election to the National Assembly was a call for service which they must take seriously in order to serve the people of Nigeria.
“Unparalleled commitment, uncommon patriotism, unprecedented hard work and indeed, a reservoir of your innermost strength will be required, as our party takes the centre stage in the next few days and begins to implement its programmes for the benefit of the long suffering people. Make no mistake about it, the days ahead will be tough, and this is not crying wolf,” he said.
He said the senators-elect would be called upon to take extraordinary actions to address the extraordinary challenges that confront the nation.
“The incoming president, more than anyone else, needs the support and cooperation of the eighth National Assembly to fulfill his campaign promises to Nigerians.
You may be required to pass important bills at very short notices. This will not be unprecedented but will require a buy-in to the programmes of the president and the party and a willingness to work with him and the party for the benefit of all Nigerians. The demands on you will be tasking, but you are up to the task,” Oyegun said.
He however said the party has the numbers, even though it believed that a bipartisan effort would be a better deal.
He said the senators-elect must share in the dreams of the president and the party to make the country great again.
“May I also remind you that all eyes will be on our party - and by extension on all of you - to see if our government will walk its talk in terms of running a lean and effective government, one that eschews waste, corruption and indiscipline, and one that will harness the nation’s human, material and natural resources for the wellbeing of the people.
“There is no magic wand to make our economy better overnight. Against the realities on the ground, some of which I listed earlier, reviving our economy will be a long and tortuous process. Bold decisions will need to be taken, and this can only be possible if there is a synergy among our party, the National Assembly and the president. We know you will not fail us, and you will not fail Nigerians,” he added.
Source: Sunday Trust
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