Buhari Asks Elite to Embrace Change

Tobi Soniyi in Abuja

President Muhammadu Buhari has called on the Nigerian elite to stop insisting that things should be done the ‘old way’, which impoverished the nation.

A statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Garba Shehu,‎ said Buhari spoke on Tuesday at a meeting with a group of Nigerians in the Diaspora, on the margins of the 3rd Dakar International Forum on Peace and Security in Africa in Dakar.

The president said his administration was on the right track to improve the image of the country by entrenching accountability and probity in governance.

He told the 11-man Nigerian delegation of association leaders resident in Senegal and Cote D’ Ivoire, that the last 16 years of poor handling of the nation’s resources and infrastructure have continued to impact negatively on the country.

“This administration is pleased we won the election, we are pleased Nigerians are cooperating with us.But the problems are so enormous that we need the cooperation of Nigerians, particularly the elite.

“They (elite) should reflect on the condition of the country, and stop making expensive demands because things cannot be done the old way,’’ the president said.

On the welfare of Nigerians in the Diaspora, Buhari assured them that the Federal Government would continue to promote good neighbourliness and improve the negative perception about Nigerians abroad.