President Muhammadu Buhari in an interview with NTA News on Friday evening bore his mind on certain issues in the nation.
Special courts are needed to fight corruption – Buhari
President Buhari stated that Nigeria needs special courts to strengthen the fight against corruption and speed up prosecution processes.
“Yes, we need them to save time and to convince Nigerians we are serious,” he said.
The President argued that Nigeria inherited legal systems during independence, which have bureaucratic roadblocks that take years to execute cases.
“But if you have sufficient courts, you bring charges immediately, people are put before the court, they will defend themselves,” he said.
The President added that in the current judicial system, people accused of corruption can afford first-class SANs to defend them, forcing cases to drag on until the judge dies or the committee gets tired.
“Special courts are important in cases of corruption so that riot act would be properly read to the public,” he said, citing that those who misappropriate public funds should be held to account for it.
Majority of Nigerians appreciate me, understand what we are doing –Buhari
The President further stated that it gladdens his heart that “majority of Nigerians” appreciate him and understand what he is doing for the country since he has been in office in the last six years.
When asked what gives him joy looking back in the last six years, Buhari said, “No matter how reluctantly, major of Nigerians are understanding me and appreciating the efforts we are making because right from the get-go, we identified our problem, one security; two, economy and try to fight corruption, people getting something for nothing, we have to make sure that people earn their living and they defend it.”
I’m not pleased with performance of economy – Buhari
President Muhammadu Buhari has said he is not happy with the performance of the nation’s economy.
He said the low performance of the economy has been a thing of concern to him, adding his administration was doing everything possible to improve the economy.
According to him, one of the steps taken so far is reaching out to the international community to allow their multinational firms to come to Nigeria and establish their presence by employing Nigerians through which the economy will pick up.
On corruption, President Buhari said it was high time special courts were established to try several corruption cases currently stuck in conventional courts.
“You have instances of cases lasting for as long as 10 years before they are determined and in some cases judges handling the cases may die. But if there are special courts, there will be a time frame to conclude the corruption cases and not dragging on unnecessarily,” he said.
I hope to hand over a secure, prosperous Nigeria in 2023 – Buhari
President Buhari said he hopes Nigeria will be secure, prosperous and confident by the time he leaves office in 2023.
According to the President, he is committed to stepping down in 2023 and has no third term agenda, as the constitution allows for only two terms.
He added that the success of his administration will depend on the survival of his party, the All Progressives Congress, after 2023.
The President argued on Friday that his administration was committed to securing the country from all forms of violence, including banditry and terrorism.
He said it was unfair to conclude that the police and military action currently ongoing in the South-East was a result of his dislike of the region.
“We have been deploying police and army to deal with bandits” in the North, the President said.
While stressing that security had improved since 2015, he said his administration still faces the challenge of acquiring the required weaponry and ammunitions to fight crime in all facets.
The number one thing is security, the President said, because if you don’t secure Nigeria, people will not invest.
He also condemned #EndSARS violence, noting that such actions were bound to drive off prospective investors.
The President acknowledged that corruption remained a nagging problem and decried the difficulty of dealing with it under a democracy.
“It is difficult under this system,” he said. “When I was a bit younger, I arrested politicians and put them under restriction and told them they were guilty until proven innocent.”
However, he said majority of Nigerians believe his administration was doing its best under the circumstance.
He advocated for the creation of special courts to deal with corruption, noting that such an institution would speed up the hearing of financial misappropriation cases and ensure criminals do not cheat justice.
The President said his administration has focused on building public infrastructure such as railways and roads, and acknowledged China’s assistance.
“We are grateful to China,” he said. “They have agreed to help us and they are helping us.”
He added that his administration has also prioritised the production of fertilizer in order to fight food insecurity.
The President said his administration’s decision to close the country’s borders for months has boosted agricultural production.
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