Pat Stevens/
President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday declared that democracy was too slow for his liking.
He stated this at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, during a brief ceremony where his close aides presented a giant cake and a card to him on his 77th birthday.
Comparing the current anti-graft war to the one he prosecuted as military head of state between 1983 and 1985, Buhari recalled how he quickly jailed those who stole money from the country and returned the recovered funds to the respective states in good time, without being bugged down by any democratic bottleneck.
“Well, like I said, I have learned in the hard way. When I came in uniform, I got those who were leading, took them to Kirikiri (Maximum Prisons) and told them they were guilty until they could prove themselves innocent.
“I put, based on almost all the geopolitical zones, committees to investigate them. Those that were found to have lived beyond their means, the balance was taken and was given to the states.
“But, I myself was arrested, detained…So, under this system (democracy), which is supposed to be more accountable, it is too slow for my liking, but I have to follow it.”
The President also promised to ensure that the 2023 poll is free, fair and credible, adding that hard work would be the only option for anyone to succeed at the polls.
He said, “What I want to promise Nigerians is that I will work very hard on free and fair elections.
“All those that are going to succeed in the National Assembly and the Presidency, they better work very hard because I will make sure, using the law enforcement agencies, that elections are free and fair; that nobody uses his office or his resources to force himself on his constituency.”
He called for patience and patriotism by Nigerians to guide the country to the future.
“Patience and patriotism, that is what we will see as a rule. Nobody can have his own way; we better accept the truth that we are one Nigeria, we keep on building.
“God has blessed us with land and people and resources. We must have the patience to exploit them and leave something for our future generations”, he added.
Asked how he felt at 77, Buhari replied, “Well, I think I feel well at 77. A lot of those at 77 are on crutches and I am walking on my two feet.”
He also described Nigeria a “terrific country” where people must talk about you negatively, no matter how well you tried as someone in a leadership position.
“I think I have come to accept the realities of leadership in Nigeria; you can only try, it is a terrific country.
“No matter what you do, there are people on a daily basis that look for your faults and go to the press. So, you have to learn to live by that”, he stated.
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