President Muhammadu Buhari apologizes to Nigerians, offers explanations, and makes promises in a rare move
President Muhammadu Buhari said he regrets that inconvenience Nigerians have faced recently due to issues bordering on fuel scarcity and national grid failures.
Nigerians have been plagued by prolonged fuel scarcity, a situation that was exacerbated earlier this week when grid failures plunged the West African country into darkness.
The Nigerian leader assured that his government was working hard to address the issues soonest.
In what can best be described as a rare move, Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari offered apologies to his countrymen over some recent economic issues centering on fuel scarcity and power grid failures.
In a lengthy, seemingly heartfelt statement issued via Twitter yesterday, the Nigerian leader said he “deeply regrets the inconvenience caused Nigerians, following a prolonged shortage of petroleum products…”
His apology follows a weeks-long fuel scarcity crisis that has plagued the West African country, causing long queues at filling stations and affecting many households and small businesses; many of whom rely on petroleum products to generate their own electricity.
Earlier this week, a nationwide grid failure exacerbated the energy crisis. Power distribution companies sent out statements intimating customers about the “total system collapse” and promising that the situation was being monitored to determine its cause in order to proffer solutions.
To date, many parts of the country are still without electricity as the problem lingers.
It is on the backdrop of these two major problematic developments that President Muhammadu Buhari issued his apologies and made his promises. In his lengthy statement to the nation, he noted that his administration was aware that “the fuel shortage has placed a strain on Nigerian citizens and businesses.”
He also apologized to every Nigerian for the inconvenience and then promised that his government was working hard to address the issue soonest. He said:
“I especially apologize to all sections of society for this. The government is working round the clock to attend to this issue. An action plan agreed upon earlier this month is being implemented to address the scarcity.
“Working together with the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) and the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), this plan is now bearing fruit.
“Sufficient fuel supply has returned to a handful of states, with the queues at filling stations falling. In the coming days, we expect this to be the case across the rest of the country”
With regards to the power grid failures, the President explained that it was caused by a drastic decline in hydroelectric generation due to seasonal pressure, and technical and supply problems at the country’s thermal stations. He also noted that another major cause of the grid failures was low gas power generation due to the vandalization of gas pipelines.
These challenges notwithstanding, President Muhammadu Buhari promised that efforts are underway to resolve the problem and restore electricity to Nigerians.
President Buhari’s apology is rare because he seldom apologizes. However, it’s obvious that Nigerians can do with some reassurance at this point, seeing as many of them are going through very tough economic times. Asides from the energy problems highlighted above, food scarcity is also on the high side, with the inflation rate up at 15.7%.