Federal government has taken a swipe at opposition parties in the country, saying it is absurd for them to say that President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration has nothing to campaign for in the run-up to the 2023 general election.
Speaking yesterday in Abuja at the second edition of the “PMB Administration Scorecard 2015-2023, which featured the minister of transportation, Mr Muazu Sambo, the minister of information and culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said that the Ministry of Transportation has been very busy since the advent of the current administration.
The minister particularly condemned the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for what it described as a deliberate campaign of calumny and falsehood on the achievements of the Buhari administration.
Mohammed said the opposition parties are quick to point to some economic indices like the Naira exchange rate and inflation, saying “the current administration were the ones confronted with having to fight a once-in-a-century pandemic, two economic recessions, and low oil prices, Nigeria would have had no economy to even talk about!”
He said it was a cruel irony that the party that presided over the affairs of this great country in a time of plenty, but could not complete a single modern rail line, is the one accusing an administration that has completed at least three standard gauge rail lines of lacking in achievements.
He said, “We have a lot of achievements to highlight and campaign with. Indeed, the administration is spoilt for choice because of the sheer number of the achievements.”
Listing some of the achievements of the administration, the minister said they have completed the Abuja-Kaduna, Lagos-Ibadan, and Itakpe-Warri Standard Gauge Rail-lines.
Mohammed said the administration inaugurated brand new airport terminals in Abuja, Lagos, and Port Harcourt and had completed housing projects in 35 states.
He said the administration constructed or are constructing road projects in every state and have the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme that has almost weaned the country from dependence on imported rice and other crops.
He continued, “We met 15 standard rice mills and now we have over 50. We have our unprecedented National Social Investment Programme under which 9.8 million school children are fed one meal daily, under which 1 million youths have been empowered.
“Another 500,000 who are undergoing training under the N-Power and the 1,632,480 households that have been enrolled in the Conditional Cash Transfer Programme.”
He said the federal government is proud of the Integrated National Security and Waterways Protection Infrastructure (also known as Deep Blue Asset), aimed at managing, controlling, and protecting Nigerian waterways towards the advancement of coastal prosperity.
The minister said the PDP was quick in pointing to some economic indices like the naira exchange rate and inflation to cast aspersion on the government.
He said the opposition could have done worse if it was to be confronted with challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic and economic recessions.
“The truth is that if they were the ones confronted with having to fight a once-in-a-century pandemic, two economic recessions and low oil prices, Nigeria would have had no economy to even talk about!” he said.
The minister added that in showcasing the achievements of the administration, they had scheduled ministers to come and give accounts of what they had done in the past seven years.
