PROF. Lai Olurode, a former National Commissioner of INEC, has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to use his second tenure to promote the welfare of the people and guarantee their security.

Olurode told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Lagos that without peace, there could not be any meaningful development.

“So, the pursuit of the welfare of the people, which is also difficult to fulfill in the absence of security, should be the major concern of the president in this his second coming.

“I will say that the president has started on a good note by looking into the present structure of policing in the country.

“Without a reform, without an overhaul of the security, that is, the architecture of policing, we cannot make any progress.

“If insecurity persists, farmers cannot go to farm, people cannot freely move around the country. So, this should be his number one priority,’’ he said.

Olurode also advised Buhari to do more work on his contract with the people of Nigeria.

“The most fundamental of that contractual relationship is with regards to the constitution which says that the welfare of the people and their security shall be the primary purpose of government,’’ he said.

Olurode said, however, that the deterioration of the welfare of the people was not the making of the present administration.

He noted that each succeeding administration had in the past 20 years of democracy, witnessed a kind of escalation of the poverty situation in the country, and not much was done to address the situation.

Olurode, however, commended the Buhari administration for putting in place several measures to address the challenge of generalised poverty which, according to him, had led to an increase in social discontent. (NAN)

– June 10, 2019 @ 14:19 GMT |