President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday appealed to Nigerians, irrespective of their political or ethnic affiliations, to form a united front against corrupt practices in the society.
The President, who made the appeal when he hosted members of the All Progressive Congress (APC) to the breaking of fast at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, reiterated that “if we don’t kill corruption, corruption will kill Nigeria”.
He also enjoined members of the APC to drop their differences or influence in order for the party to achieve its campaign promises to Nigerians.
According to him, the APC-led administration is determined to fulfill all the three basic promises of addressing security, economy/employment and corruption, which it made in its manifesto.
“No matter the level you are, drop your influence so that we can help achieve the manifesto – security, economy, employment and corruption- because if we don’t kill corruption, corruption will kill Nigeria.
“We have to ensure that people we bring forward are those that will move the society forward,’’ he said
President Buhari, who narrated how the APC successfully defeated the PDP-led Federal Government in the March 28 presidential election, commended former Lagos Governor, Bola Tinubu for his support and words of encouragement.
“I always like to go down the memory lane to show how lucky we are as a political group.
“At no stage was the decision taken by chance, it was all deliberate.
“The leaders of the parties felt the only way to wrest power from the PDP was for us to come together.
“I, in particular, was scared after previous failures of the elections of 2003, 2007 and 2011.
“We dissolved our various parties to form APC, then we applied to INEC, for once I was grateful to INEC.
“We had gone with nine people to INEC to apply and INEC advised us that we needed at least 25 people to form a political party.
“We were able to go back and raised 35 members across the country and then successfully registered the party.
“INEC then informed the federal government that we have met the requirements hence we cannot be denied registration.
“Many doubting Thomases said merger had never succeeded in Nigeria but here we are.
“I went into this long explanation so that you will appreciate how far we have come and for a society as ours, if we respect the constitution, then all the greed and problems will be a thing of the past,’’ he said
In his remarks, Tinubu, who spoke on behalf of the party members, frowned at the insinuation in some quarters that the Buhari’s administration was too slow.
He said the APC-led administration could not clean the “16 years mess of the PDP in 30 days’’.
Tinubu described the APC as an Armoured Personnel Carrier, saying it represented the diversity of Nigeria.
He thanked President Buhari for bringing together people of various backgrounds, regardless of religious affiliations, to break the fast with him..
“We believe this diversity will continue to propel us to economic growth under your leadership,’’ he said (NAN)
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