Northern Elders’ Forum (NEF) has advised the President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari, to serve all Nigerians equally as he assumes power on May 29.
The Secretary General of the NEF, Prof Ango Abdullahi, told Vanguard in an exclusive interview that although the forum was elated with Buhari’s victory in the last election, they were also insisting that the president-elect should stand up for the rights of all Nigerians.
“As far as NEF is concerned, the right thing has just been done in Nigeria and we are happy the right president to lead Nigeria to its glory has finally emerged, Abdullahi said.
“As you know, Buhari is an honest man, with a high degree of integrity who knows what to do for this country from day one and we have no doubt whatsoever that he is going to make an impressive outing as a president.
“But let me also say that if he fails to serve all Nigerians and pursue sectional, tribal or group interests like Jonathan did, we will not hesitate to criticise him as we did to the current president,” the NEF chieftain said.
Abdullahi said the first step Buhari has to take to move Nigeria forward is to tackle raging insecurity in the country and stamp out corruption with immediate effect. He said without tackling the two monsters, it would be difficult to salvage the sagging economy and create jobs for unemployed Nigerians who voted for Buhari and his administration.
The former Vice Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University said that Buhari should resist the temptation of selecting his team from those who campaigned with him but to source for credible and experienced Nigerians from all parts of the world to form his cabinet so as to deliver on his promises to Nigerians.
“Above all , Buhari must take steps to end the era of impunity by all agencies of government in Nigeria so as to truly show himself as a true democratic leader and give Nigerians a cause to celebrate his coming into power,” the NEF chieftain said.
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