One year on: Buhari delivering on promises?

ENE OSANG examines President Mohammadu Buhari’s first one year in office, especially as it concerns youth development.

It has been a dramatic year for Nigeria youths under the administration of President Mohammadu Buhari. While some youths are hoping for positive impact of government programmes to justify their support for the APC during the elections, others have expressed displeasure arguing that the administration has failed to deliver on its campaign promises.

Youth development
Speaking on youth development programmes of the Buhari led government, the Commandant, Peace Corps Nigeria (PCN), and Board member, National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Dickson Akoh, said the President Mohammadu Buhari administration has done well so far, considering that it is a new government.

He said: “I will score the administration 95% because people may not understand policies and programmes especially when the government is new. On assumption of office the government merged both sports and youth ministry and even before the merger it took government six to seven months because they had to restructure everything in line with the merger policy.”
Akor said it was the first time this government was coming up with its own budget, adding that a solid foundation has already been laid to ensure that youth interest is properly accommodated.

He said the Minister of Youth and Sports, Barr Solomon Dalung, had to study the environment in terms of implementing youth development programmes, to ensure their needs are met.
On his part, the Executive Director, Conscience Nigeria, Comrade Tosin Adeyanju, stated that the government means well for the country, regretting that the administration started when the country was facing daunting challenges resulting from crash in prices of crude in the international market, and the level of corruption that took place in the past.
Similarly, National Coordinator, Conference of Minority Tribes in Nigeria, Comrade Okpokwu Ogenyi, praised government for job done so far, maintaining that: “One cannot do a proper assessment since the budget was yet to be implemented.”
He said:

“This is the first budget this administration will implement, you cannot assess government without budget, I always say it is upon the implementation of this budget that we can begin to assess whether the government is doing well or bad.
“For me, the government is doing well in the sense that Nigeria was almost in the state of comatose but President Buhari has changed all of that. Check, the gap between the rich and the poor in Nigeria today is very tin simply because the president is working.
“Those who have stolen money are afraid of spending such money because government has strengthened the monitoring of financial expenditures. There is the Treasury Single Account (TSA), the Bank Verification Number (BVN) and other steps taken by the government to nip corruption in the bud, so many people are careful.”

Campaign promises
For the commandant, substantial allocation has been made to youths with over N70 billion voted for the federal ministry of youth and sports, including other intervention funds like the N500 billion set aside for the payment of N5000 each to underprivileged youths.
He added that the minister and Special Assistant to the President on Youth and Student Matters are youths and many other appointments to boards, parastatals and agencies which may include youths were yet to be made.

“I am aware that for the first time some significant number of youths in the country has been captured. This is a government that came in to effect change and for us to have this change people of like and matured minds are in the team the president has formed to ensure that he delivers on his mandate,” he said.
However, the National Coordinator, Conference of Minority Tribes in Nigeria, Comrade, said nothing much has been done in regards to youth involvement in governance in relation to political appointment or empowerment.
“We were not happy that no youth below 35years made the ministerial list as witnessed in previous government where people at that age bracket were made minister.
“However we commend him for appointing a young activist as his SA on youth and students affairs.”

Commrade Ogenyi, concede that the Buhari led administration has proven to have the interest youths at heart as it concerns the N500billion has been earmarked in the budget to cater for vulnerable Nigerians, whom he said, are majorly youths.
“This is to tell you that government has youths in mind. Once the government takes shape on the implementation of budget for example; the president has ordered immediate release of funds for capital projects and work has begun. So also you will see work in other budget areas,” he said.

Expectations of government
For the Executive Director, Conscience Nigeria, moving forward, the present administration should immediately create a Youth Trust Fund (YTF) where young entrepreneurs can access loans at zero interest rate.
He harped on the need for government to integrate young people in political appointments, and ensure they are equally represented in specific boards that they are supposed to represent Nigerian youths as against previous practice whereby older Nigerians occupy such positions.

Way forward
Adeyanju said the minister of youth and development needed to constantly engage with youths, stop grandstanding and help the president to galvanize the sector towards nation building.

“More needs to be done by this government in terms of youth development. There is urgent need to declare emergency in that sector and come up with a master plan of how to engage the jobless youth because they constitute high level of crime rate as a result of no enabling environment to thrive or get engage productively,” he maintained
Akoh on his part, however, emphasised on the need for the citizenry to genuinely support the President deliver on his promises of a positive change.
“I keep saying that once you buy a car and you employ a driver, you need to allow the driver to drive you to your destination. If the President picks a wrong team and they fail Nigerians people will blame him.

“For me he has taken the right steps what is left is for Nigerians to support him. The set of youths who complain that they want a youth to be appointed as minister, they keep talking to the media without working towards it. During elections I went home to work for the party and when the government came to power I was appointed as principal SA to the governor on special duties in Benue state.

“What I am saying is you cannot be running from one media house to the other without participating in politics, political appointment is held in trust so that you won’t fail. So the youths should be patient and wait for appointments to be made before concluding that youths are not carried along,” he stressed.
Speaking further he added: “For me the government is doing well and if an attempt to sanitise the polity the government is said not to be working, I am in support of that.”
Ogenyi on his part urged Nigerians to be patient, assuring that in less than two years Nigerians will want to crucify former President Goodluck Jonathan and other leaders who have not done well in the past.