The ball is in your court – CACOL slams Buhari over ‘Change Begins With Me’ campaign

The Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, CACOL, has frowned at the slogan of the national re-orientation campaign tagged, ‘Change Begins With Me’ launched in Abuja on Thursday, saying the project is aimed at blaming Nigerians who are only victims of the mode of governance perpetrated by the incurably corrupt political class that has held on tenaciously to political power in the country till date.

Mr. Debo Adeniran, the Executive Chairman of the Coalition, said, “it’s disappointing to hear government’s attempt to transfer the blame of its daily unveiling failure on the victims of its apparent incompetence and seeming cluelessness in the face of a very challenging time.

”One would have expected that by now, with the precarious state of the country, the government should take full responsibility for the roles required of it by leading with example and boldness instead of blame-shifting and expressions of frustration.

“Yes, there is the dire need for Nigerians collectively to understand the background to the present situation of the country and the attendant sacrifices required of Nigeria and Nigerians to wade through the storm, but the present government’s excuses and false pretenses belie its so-called change agenda, to put it bluntly.

“The task to rebuild our country is very daunting, no doubts about that, but the present regime knew this before it got to power. To continue to insult the collective intelligence of Nigerians with narratives that are apparently designed to disguise the lack of political will needed to abandon the ways of the old by the political class is totally provoking and unacceptable.

“Nigerians had expressed and in a very ‘revolutionary’ manner for that matter, on March 28, 2015 when they voted massively for President Muhammadu Buhari and his party, the All Progressive Congress, APC, in the Presidential elections their will and readiness for real change! Need we remind the government that reality before it realizes that the ball is in its court to bring the change Nigerians voted for to bold relief? What fundamental change has the government demonstrated beyond mere sloganeering and governing on the basis of false pretences? Adeniran queried.

“For crying out loud the Presidential Fleet of about 11 aircrafts that was being maintained by the former regime which the present regime promised to reduce is still intact in spite of the humongous costs it takes to maintain them, yet it is the poor that must pay to maintain the unnecessary fleet that has been argued to be the most expensive to maintain in Africa! And this is in a country where the political class keeps convoys of expensive vehicles just to move an individual around; own choice properties all over the country and outside, where the political class’ dogs enjoy better humanism than the poor majority who are the real humans,” he continued.

The anti-corruption crusader, concluded, by advising the Government to move beyond excuses, rhetorics and repeated failed promises, saying, “that is the only way that government can lead by example and express in reality its claim that it understands the pains of the masses. The ordinary Nigerians in their majority are the sole victims in the subsisting scenario; they want their country to be salvaged and are ready to play their part in achieving that, transferring blame on them is unfair. It represents serious un-seriousness on the part of government in terms of its responsibility.

”Therefore we say, ‘Mr. President, the change begins with you and your government, Sir!’