Former governor of Sokoto state, Aliyu Wamakko, has described President Muhammadu Buhari’s proposed 2016 budget as “the best in the recent history of Nigeria.”
Premium Times reported that Mr. Wammako supported the proposed 2016 budget, which is believed to give about 30% allocation to capital projects. He also mentioned the importance of diversifying the economy, emphasizing the government’s intention to develop other economic facets and take focus away from oil revenues.
“No civilian administration came nearer to 30 percent allocation to capital projects. This is really commendable. Past administrations mainly allocated everything to the recurrent vote. We must commend President Buhari for this populist-orientated budget, which will address infrastructure deficit in the country” , Aliyu said.
“We are happy that we have a president who courageously seeks to address the issue of economic diversification. Remember, our old universities such as Ahmadu Bello University, Obafemi Awolowo University and University of Nigeria, Nsukka, were not built with oil money. So it is obvious Nigeria can survive without oil revenues. The three major areas highlighted – agriculture, solid minerals and tourism – will take Nigeria out of its problems when harnessed. We will forget about oil completely. The budget also gives a major check to address the educational challenges in Nigeria, including teacher quality, school enrolment and retention, training and retraining, among other issues” , He further stated.