POLITICS TODAY

[4/28, 7:49 AM] nasirdambatta: As President Muhammadu Buhari’s re-election bid gathers momentum across the country, Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), has recanted its opposition.

Not long ago, ACF had cause to pick holes in the state of affairs under Buhari’s watch.

The Secretary General of ACF, Mr. Anthony Sani, had cited what he termed the President’s culture of silence following criticisms that greeted the style adopted in the prosecution of the anti-graft war.

ACF also condemned the alleged divisions in the Presidency, coming short of blaming the first citizen for his inability to put his house in order.

These criticisms have taken the backseat as preliminary preparations intensify for the general elections.

Sani told the Vanguard that President Buhari has done well and should be supported for yet a fresh mandate.

He said that there could be dissent and criticisms being mouthed by some people even in the north but that “when the chips are down, the north will massively vote for Buhari.” He spoke confidently.

“The president has done creditably well in delivering on the promise of his electoral mandate which was hinged on three major issues namely- security, fight against corruption in order to pave the way for the economy to take root and prosper.

“So far, the regime has degraded the terrorist sect by limiting its attacks to the fringes of North East in contrast to what happened in the past when the attacks were ubiquitous and transcended the whole of the Northern states.

“As a result, fear almost overwhelmed the people, and Nigerians started losing hope. But today, confidence and hope are gradually coming back to the polity,” he noted.

On the perennial herdsmen/farmers’ clashes which have left hundreds of Nigerians dead, the ACF scribe said in no distant future, the crisis would be wiped out, root and branch.

He said: ”As to the security challenges posed by the clashes between the herders and farmers, I want to believe the regime would give them the same treatment given to the terrorists. The call by some Nigerians for government to put an end to the killings as quickly as possible, is understandable. At the end of last year (2017), most Nigerians never believed the fuel scarcity would ever disappear. Today, it is history.

“Talking about corruption, I wish to submit that the government has succeeded in pushing corruption into popular consciousness as the bane of our socioeconomic development.

“Once most people know that it is corruption which constitutes sand bags to socio-economic development, they will join the fray and help the government in fighting the menace. That is why I credit the regime in the war against corruption. The arraigned persons for corruption charges who accused the government of selective fight against corruption should note that the fight is work in progress,” Sani added.

He also passed a vote of confidence on the President with his handling of the economy.

“The economy is being diversified and rated by Breton institutions to be among the first ten fastest growing economies in the ease of doing business. The foreign reserve has increased appreciably due to reduction of imports of what we can produce while the Gross Domestic Product, GDP is forecast to be positive this year.”

That said, the ACF boss ruled out the chances of coalition movements in 2019, stressing that the elections are essentially between the ruling party and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).