President Muhammadu Buhari’s spokesperson, Garba Shehu, says Nigerians have reasons to celebrate his regime for doing well, despite increased hardship and massive exodus of citizens out of Nigeria for greener pastures. 

“I tell you when you compare this country with what is happening in West Africa entire continent, I think Nigerians have every reason to celebrate this administration,” Mr Shehu said. “We haven’t done badly has everyone has done.”

Mr Shehu made this claim in an interview with Arise TV on Thursday, adding that “Mr Buhari regime has “done reasonably well,” in spite of global economic disruptions caused by COVID-19 pandemic and Russia-Ukraine war.

“We have delivered on all our major promises that this administration has made prior to coming to office,” Mr Shehu said. “All of these things about inflation, please understand that there is a global crisis not confined to Nigeria.” 

According to Mr Shehu, “when we came in, this country had been split into two. We had a caliphate carved out of this country by Boko Haram with their system of administration. 17 of 27 local government councils were in that Republic. All of that have changed. So don’t say that we have not achieved anything.” 

Mr Shehu’s statement comes amidst severe economic hardship that has characterised Mr Buhari regime, forcing the country to record massive exodus of its citizens in an unprecedented manner. 

The number of Nigerians emigrating in search of better opportunities in the face of prevailing economic and security challenges has increased with the  Nigerian Immigration Service raising the alarm on the “worrisome phenomenon.”

In August 2022, the minister of State for Health, Joseph Ekumankama, lamented the brain drain in the Nigerian health sector as a result of Nigerian doctors leaving the country for greener pasture abroad.

While Nigerian debt profile has hit N44 trillion and it is projected to cross N77 trillion before Mr Buhari leaves office, Mr Buhari in his 2022 Independence Day speech, admitted that youth “unemployment and poverty” have remained high regardless of efforts by his regime.

Aside historic fuel and naira scarcity that have left citizens suffering,  Nigerians have also witnessed gross human rights abuses and massacre under Buhari-led regime. 

In 2015, Shiite protesters in Zaria numbering over 300 were killed by Nigerian soldiers and buried in shallow graves. 

Similarly in 2016, Amnesty International condemned the Buhari regime after soldiers killed over 150 unarmed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra. On October 20, 2020, soldiers fired shots on #EndSARS protesters, mostly youths demonstrating against police brutality and extortion.