TheCable

Tunde Bakare, serving overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly (LRA), has disagreed with those saying the Muhammadu Buhari administration lacks direction.

While giving a ‘The State of the Nation Address’ at LRA auditorium in Lagos on Sunday, the fiery pastor expressed belief that the government has a clear direction to tackle corruption, terrorism, and deal with unemployment by diversifying the economy.

Bakare, though, admitted that Buhari’s government had failed in communicating the direction of its change agenda to the Nigerian people.

“I have heard concerned citizens attribute Nigeria’s current challenges to a lack of direction by the present administration,” Bakare said.

“I beg to disagree with this opinion no matter how widely held. Right from his inaugural address, President Buhari outlined a three-point policy thrust that included combating insecurity, tackling corruption and dealing with unemployment through diversification.”

Bakare, who quoted Nigerian Security Tracker, a portal of the United States Council on Foreign Relations that maps violence in Nigeria, said  the number of deaths per month from violence perpetuated by a combination of state and non-state actors, including Boko Haram, dropped “from 767 deaths in May 2015 when this government came into power, to 250 deaths in December 2016, 19 months into the administration.

“As at April 2016, despite the acceleration of global terror, Boko Haram’s impact had been reduced from 22 attacks per month in 2015 to 9 per month in 2016,” he added.

He said the government’s diversification efforts had also propelled increased attention to agriculture, with “the sector growing by 4.54% in the third quarter of the year despite the 2.24% year on year reduction in growth rate”.

“The third quarter also saw growth in non-oil sectors, including fishing and crop production. These are signs of a diversifying economy. Therefore, the assumption that the Buhari administration lacks direction is questionable.”

In admitting that the government failed in communicating its direction, Bakare said “for a relatively long time, perhaps understandably due to the quagmire it met on ground, but also due to insufficient coordination of strategies, the government failed to effectively communicate its direction as encapsulated in the ‘Change’ agenda”.

“Due to the communication gaps, the word is now associated with unpleasant experiences by Nigerians.”

BUHARI SHOULD RESTRUCTURE NIGERIA FROM 36 STATES TO 6 ZONES

Bakare, who was Buhari’s running mate in the 2011 presidential election under the platform of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), called for national restructuring.

He identified restructuring as the prime campaign promise of Buhari’s aspirations under CPC.

“Our 36 states, most of which generate insignificant internal revenue, are not viable enough to overcome our economic challenges and facilitate accelerated economic growth.

“These 36 states, overwhelmingly sustained by 24 allocations from Abuja, cannot guarantee functional infrastructure such as world-class roads, railways, airports, housing and urban development.

“These 36 states, largely unable to pay workers’ salaries, cannot guarantee standard educational and healthcare systems, or facilitate rural development.

“These 36 states should, in fact, become districts headed by Mayors within the framework of six geopolitical zones, because they will be stronger and more productive within a zonal structure.

“We seek Nigeria’s transition from 36 states to 6 geopolitical zones that will become harbingers of a united nation led by patriotic and selfless leaders”.

Bakare and the rest of LRA prayed for  the success of Buhari’s administration.