Past Leaders Should Be Blamed For Insecurity – Amaechi
Rotimi Amaechi, the Minister of Transportation, on Friday, said it was bad for Nigerians to accuse the All Progressives Congress-led regime of widespread insecurity in the country.
The former Governor of Rivers State affirmed that it was a misnomer for anybody to blame the current regime of banditry led by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), when, in reality, “the past leaders should be held responsible for mismanaging the resources of the country. “
Speaking during the opening of the North Central Coordinating Office complex of the Nigerian Shippers Council and visual presentation of the proposed Maritime Resource Centre in Jos, Plateau State on Friday.
He said, “The earlier Nigerians begin to take people who can perform, the better. The reason we are doing this project is so that we can reduce banditry and insecurity because if you don’t create jobs, you will not reduce crime.
“The reason there is crime is that the rich men who ran the economy of Nigeria for years mismanaged it. I don’t know why Nigerians like to think that we are the first to be in government.
“Before we came, there were previous governments. If they had run the economy in ways that created jobs, today, we won’t be talking about insecurity and banditry. I usually tell people, if the rich do not allow the poor to sleep, will the poor allow them to sleep? All of us will be awake boxing one another.”
According to Amaechi , the mismanagement of the resources of all Nigerians “brought us where we are.”
“So the project we are inaugurating today is the result of the management of the commonwealth that belongs to all of us and I am delighted that I approved this for the agency that they should do this project here,” he said.
Governor Simon Lalong appreciated the Federal Government for siting the projects in Plateau State.
He expressed positiveness that siting the NCCO in Jos with a four-star hotel with 150 rooms, shopping malls, gaming arcades, and sporting facilities, among others, would add a lot of value to the widespread plan for the improvement of inland container terminals across the nation and also facilitate more economic activities in the hinterland.
“This is an investment that will not only boost the economic fortunes of the state, but also create job opportunities for many of our teeming youths. It is coming at a time when there is greater demand for hotel accommodation, entertainment centres and tourist attractions to cope with the demand of the local population and the high number of visitors to the state.”
