Fellow
Nigerians:
Today
marks the 54th anniversary of our country’s independence as a sovereign
nation. This is also the tenth month of our journey into a new century,
having marked the centenary of our nation in January this year.
The
first one hundred years were marked by triumphs and tribulations, benefits and
burdens, opportunities and challenges. We made some far reaching advances
in building a strong, united and prosperous nation. We also overcame the
forces of disunity that culminated in a debilitating civil war. We have
also renewed our faith in one another, and in our country. We have proven that
we are truly a resilient nation.
President Jonathan
In
my address to the nation last year, I did emphasize that we were in a sober
moment in our country. We are still in that mood in spite of the many
accomplishments of our administration. Our sombreness has to do with the crises
of nationhood occasioned by the activities of terrorist elements who have done
the unimaginable to challenge our unity as a people.
On
an occasion like this, it is important that we remember all the precious souls
that have been lost in the unprecedented war of terror unleashed on some parts
of our country by these individuals who want to compel us to live our lives
their way. They will not succeed!
In
their mission, they have maimed and raped. They have killed men, women and
children, rendering many children orphans and several women widows.
They
have made violence their ideology and are bent on destroying our country. Dear
countrymen and women, we will not allow them.
Night
after night, day after day, our security forces continue to engage the
terrorists in battle. My gratitude goes out to our armed forces whose will has
been greatly challenged by this insurgency more than any other time, since the
civil war.
Yet,
they have remained undaunted and unwearied in the face of constant challenge
and mortal danger. Driven by patriotic zeal, they are turning the tide by their
prowess and determination. As Commander-in-Chief, I will continue to do all it
takes to enable them to keep on inflicting devastating blows at the heart of
terror. Fellow Nigerians, it is our collective duty as patriots to avail our
men and women in uniform of all the support they need to fight and win this
war.
(pix: businessDay)
This
Administration is committed to making Nigeria safe for all Nigerians,
irrespective of our places of birth, how we worship God and our political
persuasion. To all those waging war against our country, I ask that you lay
down your arms and embrace peace.
To those who have genuine grievances, I affirm
that Nigeria
will listen to you, if you bring your grievances to the table of dialogue. To
the good people of Nigeria ,
let me restate that our task of building a better and greater country must not
waver.
While
we continue to deploy our resources in the fight against the terrorists, we do
recognize the great toll the conflict is taking on our people.
This
is why, to assist the afflicted, we have launched the Victims Support Fund, an
independent multi-sectoral charity, which will aggressively solicit resources
to augment Government’s statutory intervention, in bringing succour to the
injured, the displaced and the bereaved.
In partnership with
Nigerian business leaders and international partners, we have also introduced
the Safe Schools Initiative which is aimed at promoting safe environments for
education nationwide, starting with the North East region.
The
Presidential Initiative for the North East, a comprehensive programme to
fast-track the economic restoration of this region, which has been the
epicentre of terrorist activity, has been set up.
Our
overall objective is to do all we possibly can, to sustain in the North-East,
the momentum of economic advancement, which is on-going in other parts of the
country, despite the machinations of the terrorists and their sponsors.
It should now be clear to
anyone who was ever in doubt that these terrorists do not mean well for anyone,
of whatever religion or dispensation. Their persistent choice of the weakest
and most vulnerable in society, for gruesome attack, provides an insight into
their abnormal mind-set.
President Jonathan and others cut the 2012 Independence Day Cake (pix:Africanspotlight)
I urge every Nigerian to
put aside political, sectional or other parochial considerations, and support
whole-heartedly the efforts of the government and the military, in checking
this evil.
We
are grateful to the international community, and especially our neighbours who
are working closely with us in confronting this challenge, for their increased
partnership and solidarity. Our steady progress in weakening the insurgency has
certainly justified our cooperation.
Fellow
Nigerians, in my independence anniversary address last year, I informed you
that we had taken cognizance of the suggestion over the years by well-meaning Nigerians
on the need to focus attention on rebuilding and strengthening the ligaments of
our union. It was in that regard that we announced the convening of a National
Dialogue on the future of our beloved country.
We
have successfully delivered on that promise as we established the 2014 National
Conference headed by Justice Legbo Kutigi. After months of deliberations, which
did not come without its challenges, the conference concluded its assignment
and has handed its Report to me.
I
have made a firm commitment that we would act on the recommendations of the
conference. This, I have started by setting up the Ministerial Committee headed
by the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation to work out the modalities
for implementing the Report. Every promise I make, God willing, I will see to
its fulfilment. I assure you, we shall implement the report.
One
major lesson which the 2014 National Conference has taught us as a country is
that, a multi-ethnic country like ours, must learn to embrace painstaking dialogue
until consensus is established.
To
me, the National Conference is the greatest centenary gift to our country that
we must cherish and sustain.
Fellow
Nigerians, our 54 year-journey as a nation has not been easy. There have been
tough periods, but the Nigerian spirit and the unflagging resilience of our
people have seen us through. We will continue to march forward to greater
heights.
(pix:TheNation)
We
have been able to sustain a big, strong and influential country with a robust
economy. We are currently in our sixteenth year of uninterrupted democratic
rule, daily improving on the consolidation of our democratic process.
Our Administration has made a commitment
to ensure that we build and sustain a democratic infrastructure anchored on
free and fair elections. International and local observers have attested to the
positive evolution of electoral credibility and we cannot afford to relent.
We will continue to ensure
that the will of the electorate prevails so that political leaders would be
reminded at all times that there is a day of reckoning when they have to go
back to the people at the polls. Election days must not be days of violence and
death. We must remain vigilant to ensure that our electoral process is
characterised by peace, security and transparency.
I
enjoin the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), all security
agencies, politicians and the electorate to work conscientiously and
peacefully, together, to consolidate on the gains of the recent elections. Free
and fair elections have come to stay; nothing else will be acceptable to our
people.
My
dear countrymen and women, occasions such as this present an opportunity to
thank God for our country and to report to you, on our journey so far.
Our
power sector reform is on course with the ultimate objective of generating
enough electricity to power our homes, industries and businesses. We are making
giant strides in the Agricultural Sector which we are re-positioning to
diversify our economy. We will continue to upgrade our infrastructure to make life
easier for all and create an enabling environment for enterprise to flourish.
Independence Anniversary Service (pix:informationng)
Over the last four years, the implementation of the Nigerian Content Act in the Oil and Gas Sector has ensured major increase in the participation of indigenous Oil and Gas companies in the industry. Several critical infrastructure projects have been commissioned and commenced. The level of indigenous asset ownership has greatly increased and utilisation of Nigerian-owned and built assets such as marine vessels and rigs is being progressively enforced.
There
has been maximised local value addition by encouraging the manufacture of
equipment components and parts within the country. There has also been
massive growth in indigenous participation in the provision of goods and services
to the upstream sector from 10% to 60% within the last four years.
Today,
following the rebasing of our economy, every international monitoring and
ratings agency now acknowledges Nigeria as the largest economy in Africa, with
a Gross Domestic Product of five hundred and ten billion dollars ($510 billion)
which also places us as the 26th largest economy in the world. This is
progress.
Earlier
in the year, we launched the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) and the
National Enterprise Development Programme (NEDEP) with the stated objective of
fast tracking inclusive growth, job creation, enterprise development and
industrialisation.
The
success of these policies is already evident in the increased value addition in
the agricultural and manufacturing sectors.
President Jonathan, his wife, Patience, and others
about to cut 54th Independence Day Cake (pix:The Nation)
President Jonathan, his wife, Patience, and others
about to cut 54th Independence Day Cake (pix:The Nation)
In
line with our objective of encouraging the production of made-in-Nigeria
vehicles and making Nigeria
a regional hub for the automobile industry, a number of foreign auto
manufacturers have established plants in Nigeria , complementing the laudable
efforts of our local vehicle manufacturers who have also demonstrated great
innovation and competitiveness.
We
have also launched a special support programme for Micro, Small and Medium
Enterprises with an initial intervention fund of two hundred and twenty billion
naira (N220 b). This is in addition to the Presidential Job Creation
Board which I inaugurated recently with the charge to create three million jobs
annually.
In
demonstration of our Administration’s commitment to addressing Nigeria ’s housing
deficit, we have commenced the new mortgage re-finance programme with the
establishment of the Nigerian Mortgage Re-finance Company. It is expected that,
in addition to creating additional housing units across the country, this
initiative also represents a huge job creation opportunity.
We
have recorded notable success in the social sector. Nigeria has been globally
acknowledged for reducing extreme hunger by more than half, with the Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO) formally presenting the country with an award
for achieving the Millennium Development Goal on Hunger three years ahead of
the 2015 target date set for the Millennium Development Goals.
This
progress is as a result of the deliberate policy of government to increase
capacity in our agricultural sector of which the first step was to address and
eliminate the graft in our fertilizer procurement system and ensure that the
product gets directly to the farmer. We are expanding our irrigation
infrastructure to ensure that our farmers have sufficient water supply for dry
season farming.
A
benefit of these combined actions is that our national food import bill has
declined from 1.1 trillion naira (6.9 billion dollars) in 2009 to 684.7 billion
naira (4.35 billion dollars) by December 2013, and continues to decline.
Modern
hybrid schools are being provided for less privileged children across the
country, resulting in significant increase in the national school enrolment
figure
In
order to further enhance access to education at the tertiary level, fourteen
new Federal Universities have been established; and, to encourage persons of
exceptional abilities, our Administration has also introduced a Presidential
Scholarship Scheme based strictly on excellence and merit.
On
infrastructure, we are building roads, bridges, and new rail lines to make it
easier to traverse Nigeria
and increase the integration of our people and our ability to do business with
each other. In this regard, we have commenced the process of building the Second Niger
Bridge . The Loko-Oweto Bridge
over River Benue in Nasarawa and Benue
States , will significantly reduce
travel time by road between Northern and Southern Nigeria .
The on-going dredging of the River Niger up to Baro in Niger State
is opening up large parts of the Nigerian hinterland to maritime activity.
The
Zungeru and Mambilla Hydro-electric power projects are on course, and the
Kashimbilla dam which we started a few years ago, is nearing completion. The
successful privatisation of our power sector will in the long run enhance
industrial growth. Policies such as this and others have raised Nigeria to the enviable status of being the
number one recipient of Foreign Direct Investment in Africa
in the past year.
The
result of this infrastructure drive is that two and a half million jobs have
been created over the past two years. This is a record, which we are committed
to improve upon to continue to provide jobs for our youth.
An unprecedented number of Airports
across the country, are not only being reconstructed at the same time, but
being re-equipped and reassessed with emphasis on maintaining global standards.
Fellow
Nigerians, the goals we set to achieve for our country involve expanding the
frontiers of economic freedom. Let us therefore unite with one heart and one
mind. All our people must have access to the good things of life. All our
people must be empowered to pursue the gift of life with happiness. This is our
country; we must build it for our common posterity.
As
we move into an election year, desperate moves to overheat the polity are
becoming a regular occurrence. Our political leaders in particular must
know that the contest for power should not translate to the destruction of the
polity.
The
contest for the leadership of our country must yield good governance, and not
ungovernable spaces. The love of country should rank higher than our individual
ambitions.
We
must remain committed to a united and indivisible Nigeria within democratic
parameters. The protection of individual rights, liberty, equality before the
law, freedom of thought, and a progressive pursuit of a sound economy must be
our goal.
I
cannot end this address without commenting on the deadly Ebola Virus Disease
(EVD) which was sadly brought into our country recently. My directives to the
Federal Ministry of Health saw the ministry leading the charge in curtailing
the spread of this deadly scourge and managing its impact. This is how it
should be: swift, effective and comprehensive action in defence of
citizens.
It must be pointed out that the Ebola
battle is still raging elsewhere in our sub-region. I therefore enjoin all our
citizens to continue to adhere strictly to all the guidelines that have been
given by our health officials to keep Ebola out of our country.
I
appreciate and welcome the spirit of collaboration, unity and partnership with
which we confronted the threat of the Ebola Virus Disease. I thank all
Nigerians for working together to prevent what could have become a major
epidemic. I particularly thank the medical personnel, some of whom made
the ultimate sacrifice.
This
is the spirit which we must demonstrate at all times as we face up to our
challenges as a nation: one people, united by a common resolve, in the pursuit
of one common national interest.
As
we look forward to another year in our national life, I am more than confident
that our tomorrow will be better than our yesterday and today. Nigeria has got
the human and material resources to excel and we shall lead the way in that
journey to our manifest destiny.
Fellow
countrymen, brothers and sisters, in all our plans, and in all our words and
our actions, we must stand together in love and unity, as one people under God.
We
are one people from the womb of one Nigeria . We are brothers and
sisters. We are one family. We are Nigerians.
God
bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
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