OPENING REMARKS BY THE MINISTER OF INFORMATION AND CULTURE, ALHAJI LAI MOHAMMED, AT THE 2ND EDITION OF THE ''PMB ADMINISTRATION SCORECARD 2015-2023'' SERIES IN ABUJA ON MONDAY, NOV. 7TH 2022
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2. Let me formally welcome you all to this second edition of the 'PMB Administration Scorecard 2015-2023 Series'. As you are all aware, we launched this series last month, specifically on Wednesday, Oct. 19th 2022, to massively showcase the achievements of the President Muhammadu Buhari Administration.
3. I said on that occasion, which featured the Honorable Minister of Works and Housing, that we have, over these past years, highlighted these achievements on various platforms, including Town Hall Meetings, Press Conferences, Radio and TV Documentaries, Media Appearances and Testimony Series. I also said that as the Administration winds down, we believe it's very important to consolidate our efforts at showcasing these achievements, hence the design of this and other special programmes dedicated to that purpose.
4. Today we are featuring the Honourable Minister of Transportation. Of course, you will agree with me that the Ministry of Transportation has been very busy since the advent of this Administration, and the
results are there to see, as you will hear shortly from our guest today.
5. Before I invite the Honorable Minister of Transportation to make his presentation, I want to address what i will call an absurdity that is being bandied about by the opposition, that the Buhari Administration has nothing to campaign with in the run-up to the 2023 general elections. It's a cruel irony that the party that presided over the affairs of this great country in a time of plenty, but could not complete a single modern rail line, is the one accusing an Administration that has completed at least three standard gauge rail-lines of lacking in achievements.
6. Indeed, the Buhari Administration is spoilt for choice in celebrating its achievements. As I said, we have completed the Abuja-Kaduna, Lagos-Ibadan and Itakpe-Warri Standard Gauge Rail-lines, we have commissioned brand new airport terminals in Abuja, Lagos and Port Harcourt, we have completed housing projects in 35 states, we have constructed or are constructing road projects in every state, we have the Anchor Borrowers' Programme that has almost weaned us from dependence on imported rice and other crops, we met 15 standard rice mills and now we have over 50, we have our unprecedented National Social Investment Programme under which 9.8 million school children are fed one meal daily, under which 1 million youth have been empowered and another 500,000 who are undergoing trainings under the N-Power and the 1,632,480 households that have been enrolled in the Conditional Cash Transfer Programme, and we are proud of the Integrated National Security and Waterways Protection Infrastructure (also known as Deep Blue Asset), aimed at managing, controlling and protecting Nigerian waterways towards the advancement of coastal prosperity. I can go on and on but that means we won't have the opportunity to hear from the Honourable Minister of Transportation.
7. They are quick to point to some economic indices like the Naira exchange rate and inflation, but the truth is that if they were the ones confronted with having to fight a once-in-a-century pandemic, two economic recessions and low oil prices, Nigeria would have had no economy to even talk about!
8. Gentlemen, we have a lot of achievements to highlight and campaign with. Again we are spoilt for choice because of the sheer number of the achievements. And that's why we have drawn up a tight schedule of appearances for Honourable Ministers to tell Nigerians the achievements in their various sectors. We have scheduled the Honourable Minister of Aviation to appear on Thursday, Nov. 10th; the Honourable Minister of Interior for Monday, Nov 22nd; the Honourable Minister of Humanitarian Affairs for Thursday Nov. 24th; the Honourable Minister of Agriculture for Thursday Dec. 1st; the Honourable Minister of Water Resources for Monday Dec. 5th and the Honourable Minister of Mines and Steel Development for Thursday Dec. 8th. More appearances are till being scheduled.
8. On this note, Honourable Minister, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, gentlemen of the press, may I now invite the Honourable Minister of Transportation to make his presentation. After that, we will take questions. Honourable Minister please!
More photos below.
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