What Nigerians must do to get the change they want – Buhari

What Nigerians must do to get the change they want – Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has tasked Nigerians to first think about how they could contribute to the nation’s development as individuals, before asking about the change his administration promised them.

Mr. Buhari spoke, Thursday, at the State House, Abuja during the launch of a national re-orientation campaign, tagged “Change Begins With Me”.

“Before you ask ‘where is the change they promised us’, you must first ask ‘what have I done to be part of the change for the greater good of society,’” the president said.

“If you have not seen the change in you, you cannot see it in others or even the larger society.”

The campaign was conceived by the Federal Ministry of Information, Culture, and National Orientation to raise the standard of ethics among Nigerians.

Mr. Buhari, over three decades ago as military Head of State, had introduced a similar campaign – the War Against Indiscipline And Corruption.

“Nigeria today is passing through a challenging moment where hardly anything works in a normal manner,” Mr. Buhari said as he flagged off the new campaign.

He said the nation’s value system has been badly eroded over the years, and that virtues like honesty, integrity, hard-work, punctuality, good-neighbourliness, abhorrence of corruption and patriotism, had given way to dishonesty, indolence, unbridled corruption and widespread impunity.

The “Change Begins With Me” campaign, Mr. Buhari said, was a framework to help sustain the achievements his administration has recorded so far in its fight against corruption.

The president called on Nigerians to support the campaign, which he said was “part of the determination of our party to seek to carry all Nigerians along on the journey to a better and greater society that we all can be proud of.”

He said the change being envisaged wasn’t only about economic and social progress, but also about personal behaviour – how Nigerians could conduct themselves, engage their neighbours, friends, and relate with the society in a positive way.

“Indeed when the campaign succeeds, it will impact heavily on the private sector. A punctual, diligent and hardworking staff can only be of benefit not just to himself or herself or the organization they work for but to various governments whether at local, state or federal level.”