President Muhammadu Buhari
The Presidency on Wednesday
explained that like a good wine, President Muhammadu Buhari who will
clock 73 in December, gets better with age.
The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, stated this in a statement in Abuja.
He was reacting to a statement credited
to Buhari during an audience he granted Nigerians resident in South
Africa that his age would limit his performance as the President of the
country.
Buhari had told the gathering that, “I
wish I became Head of State when I was a governor. Now at 72, there is a
limit to what I can do.”
Although he admitted that the President
made the statement, Adesina said it was not an admission that Buhari was
too old to cope with the demands of his office.
He said the President currently in the saddle “is like an old wine that has got tastier.”
The presidential spokesman said although
at 72, Buhari could not be called a youth, “but he has in quantum the
wisdom, patience, temperance and forbearance that age brings.”
He said he had brought all these virtues to the Presidency to make a difference in national life.
The
statement read in part, “The President, who had served as a military
governor of the then North-Eastern State at 33 years old, declared, ‘I
wish I became Head of State when I was a governor. Now at 72, there is a
limit to what I can do.’
“The above comments have been reported
by some newspapers to mean that the President was saying he was too old
to cope with the demands of his office. Far from it.
“As the saying goes, ‘old wines are tasty’ and the President Buhari we have today is a man, like old wine, that has got tastier.
“At 72, yes, he can’t be called a youth,
but he has in quantum the wisdom, the patience, temperance and
forbearance that age brings. And all these virtues he has brought to the
Presidency, to make a difference in our national life.
“The President assured the Nigerian
community in South Africa that his administration would make a positive
impact on the country. And that he would do.
“Insecurity as symbolised by insurgency
will be brought to an end, corruption will be fought to a standstill,
employment will be created for the teeming army of unemployed youths,
the economy will be revived, and the quality of life of Nigerians will
take an upward swing again.
“These will not come by a sudden flight, but they will happen in the life of this administration.”
Adesina added that at 72, the Buhari has not changed.
He said President Buhari remained “the simple, honest, incorruptible patriot he has always been.”
He added that because Nigerians
earnestly desired change, that was why they voted for him overwhelmingly
at the general elections in March.
He said all the virtues and values of the Buhari persona would be deployed into governance in the weeks and months ahead.
Adesina recalled that the Nigerians in South Africa were enthralled as Buhari spoke with them on Monday.
He said leaving the venue was an effort, as they swarmed round the President, who shook hands with as many of them as he could.
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