NEW YEAR BROADCAST TO THE NATION BY GOODLUCK EBELE JONATHAN,
GCFR, PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA, JANUARY 1, 2015.
Dear
Great People of our nation,
1. I
greet and felicitate with you all as we enter the New Year today. As we mark
the beginning of this New Year, 2015, a new nation is being born. A new
nation is being born because of the foundations we have all laid, working
together for the good and progress of our dear fatherland.
2. I join you
all in thanking God Almighty who has brought us this far, for continually
bestowing His Grace upon us and for guiding our great nation safely through all
the challenges of the past year.
3. This year,
as in the year past, I reaffirm my commitment to work to ensure a secure future
for our dear country and the generations yet unborn.
4. Last year,
we celebrated our hundredth year of nationhood. The year brought us further
progress, challenges and fresh opportunities.
5. We have
contended with the normal challenges of nation-building and the unusual
challenges of terrorism.
6. But we have
continued to vigorously confront those who seek to destroy the bonds of unity
that hold us together.
7. On
this first day of the New Year, I want to pay special tribute to the gallant
officers, men and women of our Armed Forces and other security agencies who
have been in the forefront of the war against terrorism and violent extremism
in our country and sub-region.
8. I also
commend all Nigerians who have remained vigilant and cooperative with our
security agencies in the fight against the common enemy.
9. We are
re-equipping and re-positioning our armed forces to enhance their capacity to
win the ongoing war against terror and insurgency.
10. Regrettably, terrorists have
unleashed much pain and agony on our land. They have made widows of our mothers
and sisters and orphans of our children. They have shut down businesses,
desecrated places of worship and brought untold hardship to both men and women.
They have violated the culture and peaceful way of life in our country, which
took generations to build.
11. They have destroyed
countless schools and displaced people from their communities, driving them
into exile.
12. I want to assure you that the
terrorists will not get away with their atrocities: they will not win; they
will be routed. As President, I feel the pain of all affected communities and
families. I hear their cries and share their sorrow and pain.
13. We will not forget; we will not
look the other way. We have done a lot of painstaking planning and work to
resolve the current security challenge. We will bring justice to the savage
terrorists known as Boko Haram. They will be defeated.
14. That is the solemn commitment I
make today as President of the Federal Republic, and Commander-in-Chief of our
Armed Forces.
15. By the Special Grace of God, the
Federal Government, under my leadership, has continued, in the past four years
to lead our country forward, even under the most trying circumstances.
16. The progress we have made in
priority areas bears us testimony.
17. Amongst other achievements, we have
rehabilitated and expanded our rail transportation network, successfully
privatized power generation and distribution, significantly reformed and
increased local participation in our oil and gas industry, and improved
nationwide access to potable water from 57% in 2010, to 70% at present.
18. We have also made significant progress
in improving access to primary, secondary and tertiary education by building
and equipping more schools, including special Almajiri schools, and
establishing additional universities to ensure that each state of the nation
now has at least one Federal University.
19. Our national economy maintained a
steady growth rate of close to seven per cent in the past four years and
millions of fresh employment opportunities were created for our people as a
direct consequence.
20. Recently, we launched the Youth Employment in
Agriculture Programme (YEAP) and the $100 million dollars Government and Donor
Fund for Agriculture Finance in Nigeria (FAFIN) to fast-track the positive
transformation of our agricultural sector.
21. The Youth Employment in
Agriculture Programme (YEAP) targets 750, 000 market-oriented young
agricultural producers while the $100 million dollars Fund is to provide
affordable long-term financing to support the development of small and medium
agribusinesses in the country.
22. This is in addition to a N50 billion
Farm Mechanization Support Fund set up by the Central Bank to establish 1,200
agricultural equipment-hiring enterprises.
23. Both funds will become fully operational
this year. Policies and programmes such as these to boost agricultural
production remain topmost on the agenda of this administration.
24. Being very conscious of the inherent
perils of our over-reliance on income from crude oil exports for national
development, we have focused on accelerating the diversification of our
economy.
25. The non-oil Sector which has grown by an
average of 8% in the last few years, is now a major driver of growth in our
economy.
26. The 2015 national budget, which is now
before the National Assembly, is targeted at deepening our efforts at becoming
a non-oil economy.
27. The budget also includes measures to
ensure that the downturn in the price of oil does not affect our development
plans and our national economy too adversely. We are adjusting our financial
processes to safeguard our economy. We are also taking steps to ensure
that the poor and the low and medium income earners do not bear the brunt.
28. In 2015, this administration will continue to
lay the foundation for a vibrant economy that attracts significant Foreign
Direct Investment and promotes policies that ensure economic stability.
29. We will ensure stability in the value of
the Naira by striving to take away speculative behaviours that cause market
exchange pressures.
30. We will continue to build and maintain a
healthy external reserves position and strengthen fiscal buffers. We will
ensure the Naira remains strong, and gives foreign investors the clarity and
certainty that they need, to guide future investment decisions.
31. We will continue to improve our
payment systems and strengthen risk-based supervision mechanism for Nigerian
banks to ensure overall health and stability of the banking system.
32. We are introducing a broad spectrum of
financial instruments to boost sector-specific enterprise areas in agriculture,
Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs), manufacturing, and oil and
gas to enhance our aggregate supply capacity, reduce poverty, promote job
creation and increase the general well-being of our people.
33. These efforts and other measures being
spearheaded by relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies, are geared to
ensure a secure future for Nigeria and create a much more prosperous country,
where people live more peaceful and fulfilled lives. Fellow countrymen and
women,
34. As we enter an election year, I assure
you that our administration will remain fully focused on providing good
governance and the delivery of better public services to our people.
35. The coming campaigns and
elections will not distract us from our ongoing work to significantly improve
the living conditions of our people. And I urge all tiers of government
not to be distracted as well.
36. The elections are very important for us
as a country. Their successful conclusion will further strengthen our
democratic institutions and place our beloved country even more firmly in the
comity of truly democratic nations.
37. Given the challenges that have
characterized some previous electoral contests in our country, the eyes of the
world will certainly be on the conduct and outcome of our fifth post-military
rule general elections.
38. I reassure all Nigerians and the international
community of our firm commitment to free, fair and credible elections. My
commitment to free elections and one man, one vote remains unwavering.
39. Our administration has worked hard in
previous elections to prepare all key stakeholders including the Independent
National Electoral Commission (INEC), security agencies and the electorate
optimally, to ensure a progressively improved electoral process in the country
under my watch. We will continue to do so for the coming elections.
40. We will continue to provide adequate funding
to INEC and maintain the Commission’s independence and isolate it from any form
of interference or meddling in its day-to-day affairs. This shall
continue to guarantee its impartiality and ability to conduct more credible and
acceptable elections.
41. National security agencies will
also be given all necessary support to enhance their ability to ensure that the
elections are peaceful and violence-free. The Nigeria Police has already
established an Elections Security Planning and Monitoring Unit.
42. I am optimistic that with the
cooperation of all law-abiding citizens of the country, our commitment to have
a peaceful and violence-free election will be actualized.
43. I will like to say this, once again, to
my fellow politicians and political leaders. None of our political ambitions is
worth the blood of any of our countrymen, women and children. The
improvement of their lives and living conditions ought to be our primary motive
and the driving force of our quest for political power and leadership
positions.
44. Let us not promote sectionalism,
disunity, intolerance, hate, falsehood or the malicious abuse of political
opponents. Whatever we feel or seek, we must have a nation and a people before
we can dream of political ambitions. Let us put the nation and the people
first.
45. Let us all conduct our electoral
campaigns with the highest possible decorum and civility towards political
opponents. Let us give INEC the fullest possible support and cooperation it
requires to conduct credible and violence-free elections in 2015.
46. After the 2011 general elections,
some unpatriotic elements embarked on an orgy of violence, resulting in the
destruction of lives and property. That will not be allowed to happen this time
around. This government will act decisively against anyone who disrupts the
public peace, before, during or after the 2015 general elections.
47. All Nigerians, of voting age, are free to vote based
on their convictions. It is our duty to defend and protect that basic right,
and let no one be in doubt, we will.
48. Fellow Nigerians, I urge all of you to enter
the New Year with renewed zeal and patriotism, to serve our fatherland with
love, honesty, faithfulness and hope for a greater tomorrow.
49. As I have always maintained, none of the
challenges before us is insurmountable. We must come together as a people
and work with single-minded unity of purpose to overcome them.
50. Nigeria is a key country in Africa. We must
work together to maintain our strategic position and collaborate with others to
move the continent forward. I call for peace in Africa and an end to all
conflicts in our continent. I urge all Africans to promote democracy in
their respective countries to ensure faster development of the continent and
faster economic and political integration.
51. We will continue to pray and offer
hands of fellowship and assistance to our fellow Africans suffering from the
Ebola Virus Disease. I urge all Nigerians to show compassion and
contribute in whatever way we can to help our African brothers and sisters.
52. As we go into this New Year, I salute
the indomitable and resilient spirit of our people in Nigeria and wherever they
are in the world. Our spirit of enterprise and the doggedness to succeed
amongst all odds has been our strength.
53. With our collective prayers and efforts,
we will grow our economy and our people will become wealthier. Government will
continue with programmes deliberately designed to create more jobs for our
youth, to enable them contribute more to the growth and development of our
nation.
54. Let us continue our march to the future,
towards the attainment of our collective vision of a strong, united, prosperous
and harmonious nation – a secure nation for us and for our coming generations.
55. I wish you all a happy and fulfilling
2015.
56. God bless the Federal Republic of
Nigeria.
57. Happy New Year, Nigeria!
58. I thank you all.
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