President Muhammadu Buhari, stated Friday in London that Nigeria was prepared to do better in future elections thanks to the lessons acquired from the general election of 2023.
As part of the important activities leading up to the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III as King of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Commonwealth, Buhari said to his counterparts at the Commonwealth Leaders Summit, “Lessons have been learned and moving forward, we hope to perform even better.”
This information was provided in a statement that Femi Adesina, the Special Advisor to the President on Media and Publicity, signed late on Friday and captioned “Lessons we learned from the 2023 elections, by President Buhari.”
Buhari noted the high voter participation and the overall calm environment in which the general election of 2023 was conducted as reasons for his happiness.
He declared that the “amazing voter turnout in these elections is evidence that Nigeria’s democracy is developing. We have shown that a government can be elected peacefully and fairly, despite certain areas of violence.
We aspire to perform even better going future after learning from our mistakes. On the basis of this, I am happy to remark that we have advanced our democracy with peaceful, transparent, and reliable results.
We are dedicated to working towards a wider engagement of all Nigerians in the democratic process, including those in the diaspora, even if we are conscious that there are still challenges.
He acknowledged the Commonwealth for sending a team to observe the polls, but added that they were usually free and fair and that the nation’s response to the announcement of the victors so far indicates that Nigeria’s democracy is developing and will only get better.
The President also emphasized the important role that Nigerian youths played in the elections and in promoting national development, attributing a large portion of this youth participation to the passage of the “Not Too Young To Run” Bill, which his administration signed into law in 2018.
He declared that this year’s Commonwealth Youth and Students Summit for the African Region, with the theme “Making Change Happen,” would take place in Abuja, Nigeria, from May 9 to 11.
The departing Nigerian leader also bid his colleagues farewell while expressing happiness over their shared beliefs and objectives for the future.
“As I stand before you today, I’m also conscious of the fact that as I leave office on May 29, 2023, this will be my final formal meeting with His Majesty The King and some of you.
“Therefore, I feel both grateful and humble for this exceptional and critically crucial occasion.
“Over the years, I have worked cordially with the leaders of the Commonwealth to achieve the values and principles of the Commonwealth which are shared by its members – the aspirations of the Commonwealth family which include positioning it to be a strong and respected voice in the world and improving the lives of all its citizens are being vigorously pursued,” he said.
Among the leaders of the Commonwealth invited to Charles III and Camilla’s coronation as His Majesty The King and Her Majesty The Queen Consort of the United Kingdom, respectively, is Buhari.
