Buhari to visit Borno Thursday

President Muhammadu Buhari will visit Maiduguri on Thursday, on a one-day official visit to Borno State.

The state governor, Babagana Zulum, stated this in a special broadcast to the people of the state on Wednesday.

Mr Zulum said the president would appraise the security situation and inaugurate some of the viable projects executed by the federal and state governments during the visit.

“I once again, thank you for supporting our administration. I remain grateful to everyone, for your support, well wishes, prayers and above all, for being good citizens.

“Insha’Allah; our President, Muhammadu Buhari, will be coming to Borno State on Thursday, June 17, 2021.

“The president is coming to appraise the security situation in the northeast during which he will commission some developmental projects executed by the state government.

“The president will also commission the first phase of 10,000 houses which he generously approved and funded, for the resettlement of IDPs and refugees,” he said.

Mr Zulum disclosed that construction work of over 4,000 of the 10,000 houses were completed at Kakeri, Dalori and other communities across the state.

The governor noted that the president “had demonstrated greater commitment to the security situation, and displayed deep compassion and love for the state”.

According to him, “the president has initiated viable infrastructure development projects to fast track peace restoration and resettlement programmes for sustainable social and economic development of the state”.

He listed some of the projects to include the establishment of a power plant by the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), designed to address epileptic electricity supply in Maiduguri and its environs.

The landmark project, he said, would impact positively and encourage growth of Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs), to improve social conditions and communal security.

Other projects included the establishment of the Federal Polytechnic, Monguno, a pioneer federal polytechnic in the state.

Mr Zulum noted that the feat achieved in the ongoing housing and resettlement programmes were only possible by the prevailing relative peace in most of the local government areas of the state.

“While I must admit that we still have security challenges, at the same time, if we cast our minds back to the realities before President Buhari’s coming, we would factually recall that many of our communities in northern, central and southern Borno, were mostly, no-go-areas.”

On humanitarian crises, Mr Zulum said the federal government had implemented the Buhari Initiative to ensure steady food intervention to the displaced persons through the joint efforts of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS), the Northeast Development Commission (NEDC), and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

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“President Buhari is concerned about the humanitarian situation and sincerely committed to finding peace in Borno.

“This is why he is visiting us on Thursday.

“I most respectfully invite and urge all of us to come out and honour a President, whose love for Borno has been so obvious.

“I urge us to demonstrate Borno’s creed of hospitality. Borno is known for the culture of dignity, the culture of respect and the culture of honoring our guests.

“Let us once again, show the Borno in all of us, as we host our President,” he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Maiduguri is agog to receive the president as environmental workers scaled up sanitation activities to beautify the town and give him a befitting welcome.

(NAN)