Buhari is demonising legislators to promote himself

Sir: Nigeria’s President, General Muhammadu Buhari (GMB) has been playing the blame game since 2016 after he could not deliver on his promise to defeat Boko Haram and he was always going to London for medical care and rest.

In 2015, GMB said Nigerians should wait for the 2016 budget to see the beginning of the Eldorado that he had been promising since 2003.

Then 2016 came and Nigerians saw nothing of such. Then the blame game started in earnest, saying it was the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that destroyed the nation’s economy for 16 years, but that Nigerians would see wonders after the passage of the 2017 budget.

At the same time, the Vice-president, Yemi Osinbajo, who was the chairman of the Economic Team, was moved by whatever was remaining of his conscience and he contradicted GMB, saying he saw nothing that would change the economic situation in the 2017 budget, based on the economic situation.

2017 dragged-on and the economy was (and is) getting worse. The blame for the worsening economic situation was extended from the PDP to the national legislators and the many millions of naira that they are said to cart home monthly, individually.

But a group of experienced people challenged those in the presidency to declare how much they themselves cart home monthly, individually, including GMB and Osinbajo.

You would think that the presidency should stop accusing the legislators since it has been shying away from throwing light on its own earnings.

But GMB has no other hiding place than blaming the legislators, the PDP and his own predecessors, with particular reference to General Olusegun Obasanjo (OBJ) who had the guts to say he (GMB) has failed in his promise to redeem Nigeria from insecurity and poverty.

The major problem about insecurity was the unjustifiable war against Boko Haram. Rather than finding peaceful resolution of the crisis, GMB promised to defeat Boko Haram.

Worse than that, he started protecting the Fulani herdsmen terrorists and he aggravated insecurity to unprecedented levels outside of the civil war of 1967-1970.

Then a third force termed “armed bandits” has emerged in search of livelihood, dealing with civilians and security operatives, due to worse destruction of Nigeria’s economy under GMB’s watch.

Otherwise, there was no time, since 1999 till date that people are not complaining that Nigeria’s rulers (not just the legislators) are apportioning too much money to themselves.

Indeed OBJ was guilty of saying that anybody who wanted should join politics. GMB is now blaming the legislators in holier than thou manner.

One of GMB’s mouthpieces, Femi Adesina, is quoted as saying that the Federal Government cannot pay the minimum wage of N30, 000 unless the legislators can reduce their earnings, yet he has not demonstrated that those in the presidency, including GMB and Osinbajo, are earning less than the legislators.

People like Olusegun Kosalamala should mind what they say on radio, putting the blame of the failure of the Federal Government to accept to pay the minimum wage of N30, 000 only on the legislators and state governors, rather than on GMB who is squandering human lives and economic resources on the unjustifiable war against Boko Haram and protection of the Fulani herdsmen terrorists.

Jumbo salaries and emoluments by Nigeria’s rulers are crippling the economy but the situation has been like that since 1999, and of course it has to change.

Yet, what is new and much more damaging is the militancy of Nigeria’s rulers since 2009, and GMB has been worse in brutality.