Buhari’s acceptance of election speech
Acceptance Statement by General Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, President-Elect of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
April 1st, 2015
April 1st, 2015
I
am immensely grateful to God for this day and for this hour. I feel
truly honoured and humbled that the Nigerian people have so clearly
chosen me to lead them. The official announcement from INEC was the
moment the vast majority of Nigerians had hoped and been waiting for.
Today, history has been made, and change has finally come. Your votes
have changed our national destiny for the good of all Nigerians .
INEC
has announced that I, Muhammadu Buhari, shall
be your next president.
My team and I shall faithfully serve you. There shall no longer be a
ruling party again: APC will be your governing party. We shall
faithfully serve you. We shall never rule over the people as if they
were subservient to government.
Our
long night has passed and the daylight of new democratic governance has
broken across the land. This therefore is not a victory for one man or
even one party. It is a victory for Nigeria and for all Nigerians.
Millions of you have worked for this day. So many have risked life and
livelihood; and others have died that we may witness this moment.
And
it is with a very heavy heart that I report many deaths and injuries
amidst the jubilations yesterday. We send our sincere condolences to the
families and friends of those who lost their lives; and wish speedy
recovery to those who suffered injuries. I appeal to all our supporters
to celebrate this victory with prayers and reflection instead of wild
jubilation.
!May
the souls of those who died rest in peace. Let us take a moment of
silence to honour all of those whose sacrifices have brought us to this
fine and historic hour. As the results of the election have shown, their
labor has not been and will never be in vain. Democracy and the rule of
law will be re-established in the land.
Let
us put the past, especially the recent past, behind us. We must forget
our old battles and past grievances—and learn to forge ahead. I assure
you that our government is one that will listen to and embrace all.
I
pledge myself and our in-coming administration to just and principled
governance. There shall be no bias against or favouritism for any
Nigerian based on ethnicity, religion, region, gender or social status. I
pledge myself and the government to the rule of law, in which none
shall be so above the law that they are not subject to its dictates, and
none shall be so below it that they are not availed of its protection.
You
shall be able to go to bed knowing that you are safe and that your
constitutional rights remain in safe hands. You shall be able to voice
your opinion without fear of reprisal or victimisation. My love and
concern for this nation and what I desire for it extends to all, even to
those who do not like us or our politics. You are all my people and I
shall treat everyone of you as my own. I shall work for those who voted
for me as well as those who voted against me and even for those who did
not vote at all. We all live under one name as one nation: we are all
Nigerians.
Some
unfortunate issues about my eligibility have been raised during the
campaign. I wish to state that through devotion to this nation,
everything I have learned and done has been to enable me to make the
best possible contribution to public life. If I had judged myself
incapable of governing I would never have sought to impose myself on it.
I have served in various capacities and have always put in my best.
But
despite the rancour of the elections, I extend a hand of friendship and
conciliation to President Jonathan and his team. I hereby wish to state
that I harbour no ill will against anyone.
Let
me state clearly that President Jonathan has nothing to fear from me.
Although we may not agree on the methods of governing the nation, he is a
great Nigerian and still our president. He deserves our support and
permanent respect by virtue of the office he has held. This is how an
honourable nation treats its servants and conducts its affairs; and this
is how Nigeria should be.
I
look forward to meeting with President Jonathan in the days to come to
discuss how our teams can make the transition of administrations as
efficient as possible.
Here,
I want to thank my party for selecting me as its candidate. I thank our
party leaders and members for the steadfast contributions they made to
bring our dream to fruition. I thank INEC, the police and all other
government agencies for performing their tasks in a proper manner and
for refusing to be induced to undermine the election and the democratic
process.
I also wish
to thank religious Leaders, traditional leaders, the media, labor
unions, Civil Society organisations, organised private sector, youths
and students for their roles in this election.
I
give special thanks to President Obama and his timely intervention and
support for peaceful and credible elections in Nigeria and for sending
Secretary John Kerry and other United States officials. The European
Union – especially the United Kingdom, France, Germany and other nations
that were actively involved in ensuring the success of this election
are equally appreciated. My sincere thanks to the United Nations
Secretary General Mr Ban-Ki Moon. The Commonwealth, China, India and
other Asian and Gulf states are also hereby appreciated. Finally our
brothers in the African Union and ECOWAS have truly and clearly shown
and demonstrate their commitment to our democratisation process. Former
Presidents John Kuffour, Amos Sawyer, Bakili Muluzi and his team are
well appreciated. I must also add my appreciation for the role played by
civil societies, national and International observers, other world
leaders in ensuring that Nigeria holds free and fair elections.
I
assure all foreign governments that Nigeria will become a more forceful
and constructive player in the global fight against terrorism and in
other matters of collective concern, such as the fight against drugs,
climate change, financial fraud, communicable diseases and other issues
requiring global response. I want to assure our fellow African nations
that Nigeria will now stand as a more constructive partner in advancing
the matters of concern to our continent, particularly with regard to
economic development and eradication of poverty.
Former
head of state and president Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, General Yakubu
Gowon, Alh. Shehu Shagari, General Ibrahim Babangida, Chief Ernest
Shonekan and General Abdulsalami Abubakar deserve commendations for
their statesmanship and words of caution and counsel for peace during
the tense moments of this electoral period.
Most
of all, I thank the people of Nigeria for reposing their confidence in
me at this trying moment. Our nation wrestles many challenges including
insecurity, corruption, economic decline. I pledge to give you my best
in tackling these problems.
The
good people of Nigeria, your obligation does not end with casting your
ballot. I seek your voice and input as we tackle these problems. This
will not be a government democratic only in form. It will be a
government democratic in substance and in how it interacts with its own
people.
No
doubt, this nation has suffered greatly in the recent past, and its
staying power has been tested to its limits by crises, chief among which
is insurgency of the Boko Haram. There is no doubt that in tackling the
insurgency we have a tough and urgent job to do. But I assure you that
Boko Haram will soon know the strength of our collective will and
commitment to rid this nation of terror, and bring back peace and
normalcy to all the affected areas. We shall spare no effort until we
defeat terrorism.
Furthermore,
we shall strongly battle another form of evil that is even worse than
terrorism—the evil of corruption. Corruption attacks and seeks to
destroy our national institutions and character. By misdirecting into
selfish hands funds intended for the public purpose, corruption distorts
the economy and worsens income inequality. It creates a class of
unjustly-enriched people.
Such
an illegal yet powerful force soon comes to undermine democracy because
its conspirators have amassed so much money that they believe they can
buy government. We shall end this threat to our economic development and
democratic survival. I repeat that corruption will not be tolerated by
this administration; and it shall no longer be allowed to stand as if it
is a respected monument in this nation.
I
ask you to join me in resolving these and the other challenges we face.
Along the way, there will be victories but there may also be setbacks.
Mistakes will be made. But we shall never take you for granted; so, be
rest assured that our errors will be those of compassion and commitment
not of wilful neglect and indifference.
We
shall correct that which does not work and improve that which does. We
shall not stop, stand or idle. We shall, if necessary crawl, walk and
run to do the job you have elected us to do.
I
realise that the expectation of our people today is as high as their
commitment to change has been strong and their belief in us unshaken.
While we pledge to begin doing our best without delay, we would like to
appeal to them to appreciate the gravity of our situation, so that we
become more realistic in our expectations.
We
will govern for you and in your interests. Your vote was not wasted.
This is not the first time Nigerians have cast their votes for us, and
this is not the first time they have been counted; but this is the first
time that the votes have been allowed to count. With the help of God,
we pledge to do our utmost to bring forth the Nigeria you seek.
Thank you for your patience and attention.
General Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR
President-Elect,
Federal Republic of Nigeria
Federal Republic of Nigeria
No comments:
Disclaimer:
*Don't Forget To Drop Your Comments After Reading
*Comments on this blog are NOT posted by Agbo.
*Agbosblog Readers are SOLELY responsible for the comments they post on Agbosblog.com
*Follow On Instagram @agbosblog
*Follow On Twitter @agbosblog
Thank You