By Chimezie Godfrey
The ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) has debunked the insinuation by political opposition that Nigeria is a failed state.
In a statement on Sunday signed by the Secretary and Caretaker, Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee of the party, Sen. John James Akpanudoedehe, the party declared that Nigeria is nowhere close to a failed state.
Akpanudoedehe stated,”While naysayers and opposition partisans chorus their doomsday wishes for Nigeria, our dear country is nowhere close to becoming a failed state.
“The President Muhammadu Buhari government is not oblivious to the country’s challenges and is visibly and frontally addressing them.
“From the economy to security, it is easy to sum up Nigeria with some recent recorded security incidents and the economic downturn. However, this government has displayed the political will and capacity to contain any criminal/terrorist activity and return the economy to growth.
“”President Buhari’s administration which sees the urgent need to have a better policing system for the country and is embarking on sweeping police reforms and supporting community policing, is definitely not governing a country close to becoming a failed state.
“Amid the COVID-19 induced economic slowdown, President Buhari’s administration which is stimulating the economy by preventing business collapse; supporting labour-intensive sectors such as agriculture; creating jobs through infrastructural investments in roads, rails, bridges; promoting manufacturing and local production at all levels to attain self-sufficiency in critical sectors of the economy, is definitely not governing a country close to becoming a failed state.”
He noted that President Buhari’s administration which is implementing one of the world’s largest and far-reaching social investment programmes targeting the very poor and other vulnerable groups, including women and persons living with disabilities through pro-poor spending, is definitely not governing a country close to becoming a failed state.
Akpanudoedehe drew the attention of Nigerians to the ignoble pastime of past administrations which will rather bury its head in sand and spin conspiracies in the face of insecurity and engage in voodoo economics to hoodwink Nigerians while national resources were stolen and diverted to political cronies, adding that those days are gone.
He stressed that while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and their hirelings engage in their unfortunate and apparently orchestrated attacks on the Armed Forces and other security services, the APC will rather support their efforts and charge them to do more to further degrade the capacity of terrorists and other criminal elements to attack soft targets.
