THE SPEECH OF GENERAL MUHAMMADU BUHARI ON THE OCCASION OF THE LAUNCHING OF THE CROWD FUND RAISING SCHEME FOR HIS CAMPAIGN Mr. Chairman, Your Excellencies, Distinguished Senators of the Republic, Honourable Members of the House, Gentlemen of the Press, Representatives of Youth Groups and Organisations, [I was initially tempted to adopt the unusual protocol of acknowledging youth groups first, but I was warned on time that it was better to stick with the normal convention; especially, since these youths, who still held their elders with some deference, would always understand.] Ladies and Gentlemen. Let me begin by welcoming all of us to this special occasion. This is no occasion for long speeches. Today is an occasion for celebration and the expression of gratitude. It is an occasion to celebrate the achievement of the genius of our youths who, cutting across gender, religion, profession and trade, have consistently identified with our cause and generously given of their time, resources and personal comfort and even lives, since we entered the fray and embarked on this political sojourn to salvage our nation. With this in mind, I asked my Chief of Staff to arrange to bring together the different groups, associations and organisations to a one-day meeting of the family—which is truly what we are today—so that I could thank them in person. This, to the credit of the Chief of Staff, he had done admirably well, by bringing all of us together under one roof. When we met, it was a good meeting, but it was more than that; for me, it was an opportunity to thank them for their selfless, untiring efforts to help build a better Nigeria where everyone would have the opportunity to actualize their potentials without the self inflicted encumbrances of insecurity and corruption. We counselled them to shun selfishness and imbibe the spirit of social fellowship by coming together in the interest of our collective good. Little then did I know that some amongst the leadership of the groups had such bright ideas. Although the details given were sketchy then, I was not about to put a damper to their exuberance; and it was good that I didn’t, because the little acorn sown that day had today grown into a mighty oak. And now our entire enterprise is going to bask under the shadow of that mighty tree. At this stage, as the project prepares to take off, I would like to suggest that whenever the issue of money was involved, proper documentation would need to be employed. Those to superintend over its affairs would be held accountable; and even though this was their idea and baby that would deliver and tend, my Chief of Staff, who will coordinate the project, must be kept abreast of developments. The Chief of Staff, who would be answerable to me, would guide every stage of the project. What we are about to see within the next few moments is the culmination of painstaking effort and dedication and an unquenchable zeal to make a difference to the future that lies before us. It is at once a testimony to the ingenuity and enterprise of our youths, and to their capacity to improvise and tenacity and readiness to make sacrifices for the nation’s long-term interest. What makes it worthy of praise is the fact that the initiative comes with its in-built mechanism for ensuring accountability that is also transparency-friendly. If we preach accountability, we should be able to practice it. What these youth groups have done, in addition to coming together was to develop a simple but effective method for rallying our teeming supporters worldwide for a common purpose—the salvage of our dear nation from the brink and put an end to plunder. Realising the great odds against us and the fact that most of those with deep pockets will neither share nor let us be, they have therefore devised a means of soliciting, aggregating and pooling together the widow’s mite contributed by the mass of our supporters, so that we can be home and dry during elections. Needless to add, that will not be possible without the support of every one of us. It is for these reasons that I endorse this initiative and commend it to all our supporters wherever you may be, within or outside the country. I guarantee its authenticity and the effectiveness of the safeguards put in place to ensure proper accounting and to vouch for its integrity. What is asked of you is affordable: it is easy on the pocket and it is also wallet-friendly, starting from the princely sum of 100 Naira. Let’s go for it and let us learn not to allow detractors to sing their chorus of failure to us or about us ever again. Once again, thank you all for your sacrifices and continuing support, without which, we would not be here. And I wish all of us God’s guidance in this and in all we do. Thank you very much. General Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR
Posted on: Thu, 20 Nov 2014 20:23:27 +0000
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