Nigeria among leading democracies in Africa

President Muhammadu Buhari has said that Nigeria now ranked amongst the leading democracies in Africa and in the Commonwealth 20 years after it began to experience uninterrupted democratic culture.

President Buhari was the visitor at the final day of the 50th Convocation Ceremonies of the University of Lagos, which also served as the convocation for the 2017/2018 academic session.

The president was represented by the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Rasheed Yakubu.

“With the 2019 general elections that had come and gone, we as a nation have once again reiterated our choice of democracy as the system of government by which we hope to imbibe an all-round development.

“ Our administration is committed to ensuring that the sacredness of that choice is preserved. With this policy enunciated and every programme instituted, we shall ensure that our democratic culture takes firmer roots and legacies further consolidated.

“Let me reiterate that my administration will not waver in its commitment to following due process, preserving the sanctity of the rule of law, battling grand corruption, securing the lives and property of our people and rehabilitating or upgrading our critical infrastructure.

“We will continue to be unrelenting in enthroning hard work, honesty and place the welfare of our citizens above everything else. We must all join hands to take Nigeria to the next level of progress,’’ President Buhari said.

According to him, his administration will continue to encourage Nigerian universities to build closer and better relationships with the industrial sector.

He said this would help to bridge the gap between theories and practicality with a view to addressing some of the most required needs of the nation.

He added that his administration believed in the imperative of sound educational system for national development.

“We recognise the place of our intellectuals to undertake cutting edge researches that will address the challenges of development and contribute to making lives better.

“ We acknowledge that our advancement as a nation will be driven by a robust human resource base. It should, therefore, be our collective determination to do our best to guarantee a peaceful and stable future for Nigerians through education.

“ We shall continue to interface with the unions of universities in our bid to ensuring that we have a stable higher education sector that contributes to the nation’s global competiveness,’’ he said.

While congratulating the graduating students, President Buhari charged them to make their impacts felt in matters of national development.