Buhari: PDP’s 16yrs unprecedented revenue, irresponsible expenditure

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday said that the country generated an unprecedented revenues in the 16 years Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) rule but incurred, ‘irresponsible expenditure.’

Speaking when the leadership of the organized labour led by the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC),Ayuba Wabba, paid him a congratulatory visit, he said the PDP still has questions to answer.

“You knew what this country earned between 2009 and 2015, you knew the state of infrastructure, when we came in. God gave them 16 years of unprecedented earnings. Multiply 2.1 million by $100 by 16 years. I don’t think the PDP has been able to successfully explain to Nigerians what they did with that money.

He said the major roads have not been attended to since PTF days and that there are no new ones. He added that the rail was virtually gone and no power. “So unprecedented, expenditure,” he said.

He said at the inception of his administration, militants were unleashed on his government, thus daily crude oil production dropped from 2.1m barrel daily to half a million.

He said despite the little revenue being generated, his administration was working hard to address the challenges facing the country

“Oil Production from 2.1m barrels per day went down to half a million. The militants were unleashed on this administration, and yet as confirmed by your leader, we had to ensure pensioners who were dying collect their entitlements. So really, there were terrible management of this country in last 16 years and we are just trying to make up,” he said.

Seeking the support of the organized labour, he said the government cannot succeed without their cooperation.

“We will remain focused on our promises which remains security, economy and fighting corruption. I irresponsible want to assure you that the next four years will be peaceful, prosperous and corruption free,” he said.

NLC wants tenure policy revisited

Earlier in his remarks, the president of the NLC, had urged the president to revitalize the public service and revisit the civil service tenure policy.

“There is need for us to revisit the tenure policy which has made our public service top-heavy, resulting in indiscipline and stagnation,” he said.

The NLC urged Buhari to focus on job creation, provision of affordable power across the country, reactivation and upgrading of the nation’s refineries and pipelines infrastructure, continued diversification of the economy, increased funding for agriculture research, upgrading of hospitals and academic institutions.

“We all remember the special bailout, Paris club refund and budget support package you introduced to support state governments during the recession. Your directive during this intervention was state governments must offset accumulated arrears of salaries and pension liabilities. I remember your publicly and openly asked state governors, “how do you manage to sleep at night when the salaries of workers in your state are not paid?”

“For us, that was one of the finest moments we have had with any president in this country. Your Excellency, I can stand here today and say your intervention was the difference between life and death for many workers.

“We also commend you for paying off the pension and accumulated entitlements of disengaged staff of Nigeria Airways and many other pensioners whose pension had been left to accumulate by successive governments. Despite the recession, you did the right thing,” he said.

Wabba, while appealing to the National Assembly to expedite the passage of the National Minimum Wage Act, urged the president to promptly assent it, when passed by the parliament.