Nigerian president, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on Monday, said no single government was capable of solving all the problems of the country.
He said the way out was for successive governments to be building on the foundations laid by previous administrations.
Buhari, who was represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, spoke at the State of the Nation Dialogue organised by the Nigerian Bar Association in Abuja.
“I will say no one government in this country will be able to solve the problems of Nigeria but as we build on the processes laid by successive governments, not discarding completely what has been put in place; we will build our dreams, take one or two things to concentrate on and move on“.
“We believe the outcome of this dialogue can be transmitted to us so that whatever resolutions are reached, whatever recommendations you make; that will become part of the document that we will prepare as we transit and handover to a new incoming government,” he said.
Speaking on the state of security in the country, a former Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase said the challenge in Nigeria is not much about the crime rate but the prosecution of criminals to serve as a deterrent to others.
While commending most of the presidential candidates for promising to embark on massive recruitment into the nation’s security agencies, Arase noted that technology must combine with numerical strength to make the country safe for all.
In her keynote address, Deputy Secretary of the United Nations, Amina Mohammed, called for the inclusiveness of youths and women in Nigeria’s quest for national development.
“Nigerian women constitute only 3.6 per cent of the national parliament. My appeal is to prioritise gender equality, women’s rights and increase the number of women in government,” she partly said.
Earlier in his welcome address, the NBA President, Yakubu Maikyau, blamed lawyers for some of the ills plaguing the society and urged Nigerians to forgive the past and look forward to a new nation where lawyers would be the champions of good governance, justice and development.
“I must therefore, as one who is privileged to lead the Bar at this time, apologise to Nigerians for the abdication of our role. Today, as members of the Bar, we are reputed more for how much fees we charge our clients as opposed to the discharge of our primary call to offer guidance and/ or offer ourselves for the advancement of the cause of our country,” he said.
