Economy: Nigerians will not suffer under Buhari – Presidency

The Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has said the masses in the country would not suffer under President Muhammadu Buhari's administration.

He said this on Wednesday at Ota, in Ado Odo/Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State, during a brief reception held for him by the state government in continuation of the 40th anniversary of the state and the inauguration of 40 projects.

The vice-president, who noted that the government was aware of the challenges facing Nigerians, most especially youth unemployment, said as soon as the 2016 budget is signed into law, the government would start implementing its campaign promises.

He said, 'We will implement all our campaign promises. We will create jobs for the unemployed youths. We shall create 500,000 jobs for volunteer teachers. They will be trained and employed.

'We also have programmes for market men and women and artisans. We will give them soft loans to boost their business. The masses were those that voted for us, the masses will not suffer under this administration.'

President Buhari had earlier inaugurated five projects during his two-day visit to the state which ended on Tuesday.

Earlier, the VP had inaugurated a newly-constructed road in Ayetoro, in the Yewa-North Local Government Area of the state, and three other projects in Ota and Sagamu.

Also at the brief reception held for him at Ayetoro, he restated government's commitment to fight corruption, stressing that corrupt persons would not be spared.

Osinbajo, who represented the President, said corruption which had ravaged the country, had made it impossible for government at all levels to provide the necessary infrastructure.

He lamented that if not for the high incidence of corruption that had ravaged the nation's economy, Nigerians would not have been suffering.

Osinbajo, who spoke in Yoruba, said, 'The development of our country should be of utmost importance to all of us. We should continue to proclaim it loud that corruption should not be tolerated. We have to keep saying it everywhere that no corrupt person would go scot-free.

'Whoever is involved and whatever his status is, he must answer for such wrongdoing. We have to keep proclaiming that everywhere.

'The Federal Government wants to do more for Nigerians, especially in the area of micro-finance and micro-credit schemes but corruption has been the bane of our development. We need money to do all these things.'

Osinbajo urged the people to continue to support Governor Ibikun Amosun in his bid to develop the state while he advised the state government to ensure an even development of all the parts of the state.

At Ado Odo/Ota Local Government, he inaugurated the Ilo-Awela dual carriage road constructed by the Amosun-led administration. - Punch.