President Muhammadu Buhari has warned newly-elected and returning governors that failure to deliver on their campaign promises would affect their chances whenever they seek the electorate’s support to run for office again. This warning comes ahead of the May 29 inauguration of new governments at the federal and state levels.
At the Nigeria Governors’ Forum’s induction ceremony for newly elected and incumbent governors on Monday in Abuja, Buhari made this statement.
Buhari who was represented by his chief of staff, Ibrahim Gambari reminded the governors of the importance of starting the delivery of the pledges they made during campaigns right away.
He said, “One interesting development that we all saw from the last elections is that the electorate is maturing, and people are increasingly finding their voices. Any public officer who fails to either meet up with the expectations of the people or deliver on his campaign promises would be voted out in the next election. That is what democracy is about. Deliver or get shown the door out!
“With the elections now over, it is time for us to deliver the promises we made during the campaigns.
“I have always maintained that democracy is not an end state nor is it a static event. It is an evolutionary process that takes its participants on a journey of self-realisation. The process forces us to hold a mirror to ourselves, and by doing so, we are made to constantly review and improve its critical elements to ensure that we have an inclusive democratic practice that gives faith to voters.
“We must therefore be patient, tolerant and use the appropriate channels to seek redress if we believe there have been unfair practices along the way. As you can tell, I am speaking as a veteran of the process, with the scars to show for it.”
