President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday urged Nigerians to appreciate what they have as the situation in the country is not dire when compared with other countries.
The President spoke at a State Banquet in Kano at the end of his official visit to the state after commissioning some projects executed by the government and the private sector.
According to a statement by his media aide, Femi Adesina, Buhari described ongoing infrastructure development across the country as “fantastic”.
‘‘We have a great country but we do not appreciate it until we visit our neighbours and other countries where the preoccupation is for people to have one good meal a day.
‘‘When I fly by helicopter, the number of high-rise buildings I see and the amount of development on the ground are fantastic. We thank God. We thank God. We thank God,’’ the President said.
Buhari urged the elite to encourage and inspire young people to embrace education, saying whether we like it or not, we are going to leave the country for them.
‘‘They must embrace education for education’s sake. Technology has made it possible for short cuts but nothing can replace real learning. Please encourage the children to learn.
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He congratulated Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State for doing very well on infrastructure, adding that his recent State visits to Kogi, Yobe, Lagos and Katsina have shown that the respective governors have done very well within the confines of funds available to them.
On security, the President, who described Boko Haram as a fraudulent organisation with links to international groups bent on destroying Nigeria, said his administration has succeeded in decimating the terror group, limiting their capacity to inflict harm.
The President had commenced his visit to the state with the inauguration of Dala Inland Dry Port hosted by Kano State Government in collaboration with the Federal Government.
The Inland Dry Port Project was conceived as part of the Federal Government’s Ports Reform Programme designed to decongest the seaports, while also taking shipping and port services closer to importers and exporters in the hinterland.
The President also inaugurated the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA)-funded 10MW Haske Solar Plant in a 24-hectare land in Kumbotso Local Government of Kano State.
The plant, which links industrial customers to an additional power supply, represents a significant step towards efforts to provide clean, reliable, and sustainable energy for all Nigerians.
The 10MW plant is the largest completed solar plant in Nigeria and the first under the NSIA renewable energy platform.
He also commissioned the Family Homes Funds Estate, Darmanawa, Kano, which consists of 469 affordable housing units with ancillary infrastructure.
The inauguration is coming on the heels of the inauguration of the 2,600 Housing Estate on Potiskum road, Damaturu, Yobe State, a project executed by Family Homes in partnership with Yobe State Government.
