would limit his performance as the President of the country.
Buhari, who was a military governor at 33 and Head of
State at the age of 40, said he would have loved being a
President when he was at a younger age . He will be 73 on
December 17, 2015.
The President spoke with Nigerians resident in South Africa
on Monday after taking part in the 25th assembly of Heads
of State and Government of the African Union in
Johannesburg.
He said, “I wish I became Head of State when I was a
governor, just a few years as a young man. Now at 72,
there is a limit to what I can do.”
Despite his advancement in age however, Buhari gave
assurance that his administration would make a difference.
Buhari explained that what brought him to his current
position was his love for the country.
He recalled that he was in the war front for 30 months
during the civil war, adding that like any other Nigerian, he
lost relatives and loyal people to the war.
Buhari said considering the fact that two million Nigerians
died during the war, nobody should come forward to talk
about a breakup of the country.
He stressed that Nigeria would remain one country since
God had given him another opportunity to reorganise its
affairs.
The President promised that his administration would “kill”
corruption before it wrecks the nation.
He added that the All Progressives Congress government
which he leads was determined to secure the country and
improve its economy.
“Our government is determined to secure the country,
manage the economy, create employment and fight
corruption. Some articulate writers have said if we do not
kill corruption, corruption will kill Nigeria. This APC
administration intends to kill corruption in Nigeria. We will
do our best, I assure you,” Buhari stated.
The President said he was at a time afraid that Nigeria
might become a nation like Somalia which “self-centered
elite” had succeeded in turning to a war zone in the last 20
years.
He said Nigerians were more vulnerable because the
country has many nationalities who were merged in 1914 in
spite of their religious and cultural differences.
Buhari stated that only crazy people whom, according to
him, are not in short supply, would talk of dividing the
country.
He said there was no big deal in the claims by those who
accused him of jailing them because he was also jailed for
over three years.
“After being in the military for 25 years, and getting to the
highest rank and becoming Head of State and under
unusual circumstances, as Head of State, I went straight to
detention for three-and-a-half years. So, those who accuse
me of locking them up, I too have been locked up; so
what?” he declared.
The President said he would not have believed if he had
been told during his days in the military that he would one
day join partisan politics.
He explained that he joined partisan politics with a view to
meeting the needs of the people.
Buhari said, “Why did I join partisan politics in spite of that?
When I went home people knew that I have no money and I
thought they will leave me alone, but they didn’t.
“They were coming to me asking me to do this and do
that. I found out that the only way I could do it is by joining
partisan politics.
“And maybe if I speak even if I’m not a member at any
level, people will listen to me.
“But then I joined the opposition (the All Peoples Party). I
didn’t want any political office at first, if I wanted, I would
have joined the PDP(Peoples Democratic Party) then and
maybe I would have got to where I am much earlier. But
then, I wanted to go with the opposition.
“The second thing that finally convinced me to join
partisan politics was what happened in the Soviet Union.
You know the Soviet Union was an empire in the 20th
century that collapsed without a shot being fired.
“Everybody went home, there was confusion. Now, there
are 18 countries out of the old Soviet Union.”
Buhari said he believed that the best form of governance
was democracy, but elections must be free and fair.
That, he said, was why he was in trouble and he had to
move from the APP to the ANPP(All Nigerian Peoples Party)
to CPC(Congress for Progressive Change) and eventually to
the APC.
Buhari explained that he contested his defeats in 2003,
2007 and 2011 up to the Supreme Court because of his
belief that elections must be free and fair.
He said, “In all those cases from the High Court to the
Supreme Court, we sent people to the field, they found out
why the elections were not fair.
“They came to the court and gave evidence but in the end,
they will say ‘oh well, there were some flaws in the
elections but the PDP has won.
“But at last, the PDP has lost.’’
While explaining that he had occupied different positions
like military governor of the North Eastern State, Minister of
Petroleum Resources, Head of State and Chairman of the
defunct Petroleum Trust Fund, he stated people only
remember his days at the PTF because he equipped
hospitals and schools.
The President said, “I bought bed sheets and X-ray
machines for hospital and buses for the schools.
“They (Nigerians) remember me more as chairman of the
PTF than as a former Head of State, than a governor or a
Minister of Petroleum.
“In spite of the fact that it was during my time that I signed
the contract for the Warri Refinery, Kaduna Refinery, more
than 3,500 pipelines and more than 20 depots.
“We got the tankers off the roads; we saved lives; we
saved fuel and we saved the roads.
“But from 1999 till date, the PDP messed them up. That is
why Nigerians decided to vote me.”
Buhari said despite the money politics being played in
Nigeria, his victories during APC’s primary and the March
28 presidential elections had proved that Nigerians knew
what they wanted .
He said some rejected inducement while some collected
and still did exactly what they wanted to do when there was
time to vote.
Buhari regretted that some “strong Nigerians” were
responsible for the destruction of strong institutions in the
country.
He said, “We have a system in Nigeria. No matter what you
say about the British colonialists, they built institutions for
us, unfortunately we have destroyed those institutions.
“When (Barack) Obama came to Africa, he went to Ghana;
he refused to come to Nigeria. And he said Africa or
developing countries should have strong institutions instead
of strong leaders.
“If he was in Nigeria, he would have known that it was
strong Nigerians that destroyed the strong institutions. And
paradoxically, maybe another strong Nigerian will come and
revive the institutions and make them strong again.”
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