President Muhammadu Buhari came into power on the 29th of May 2015, riding on the back of several campaign promises which included a war on corruption, improved social welfare, and the strengthening of the naira until it is equal to the dollar. His plethora of campaign promises was fantastical, to say the least.
He came out of the blocks with the acceleration of a race dog, hunting corrupt politicians and making clear that he belongs to everyone but also no one. He positioned himself as Nigeria’s political messiah. But, two years have gone by and the messiah’s ministry is looking like a con. His initial hotness quickly fizzled, replaced by languidness, seeming apathy to the suffering of the very hands that carried him into power, and eventually, the deterioration of his health.
Last week, we put out a questionnaire asking people to rate Buhari’s performance so far. The questionnaire focused on seven categories: Buhari’s anti-corruption fight, youth unemployment, women and youth empowerment, resolving the Niger Delta crisis, the state of the economy, policy and governance, and power generation. Each category was followed by 5-grade points – A: Excellent, B: Good, C: Satisfactory, D: Barely Passing, F: Fail.
This is what the responses show:
How would you rate Buhari’s anti-corruption fight so far?
The fight against corruption was the centre point of Buhari’s campaign, the horse that pulled the rest of his cart. Of the 84 respondents, 30 (35.7%) of them said he was barely passing, while 21.4% said he was doing good. Only 13.1% of the respondents thought he was excellent.
For this category, Buhari scores a D.
How well has he performed with his promise to end youth unemployment?
When Buhari came into power in May 2015, youth employment was a little over 13%. By the second half of 2016, it had risen to 25%. This is aptly reflected in the responses to the question ‘How well has Buhari performed with his promise to end youth unemployment?’. 39.3% of the respondents say he is failing, while 33.3% say he is barely passing. Only 4.8% say he is doing excellent.
For this category, Buhari scores an F.
How would you rate his performance towards women and youth empowerment?
Buhari promised he would promote the concept of reserving a minimum number of seats for women in the National Assembly; there are only 7 female senators in the 8th National Assembly. He also promised to implement the National Gender Policy where women will be guaranteed; the number of women in Buhari’s government is much lower than that in Goodluck Jonathan’s government.
He also promised provision of allowances to discharged but unemployed youth corpers. The National Youth Service Corps scheme has also remained stagnant in quality, one could even say the quality has reduced considerably.
Most of the respondents to this question say Buhari is failing or is barely passing – 34.5 say he is failing while 29.8% say he is barely passing. 25% say his performance is satisfactory and only 2.4% think it is excellent.
For this category, Buhari scores an F.
How well has he handled the Niger Delta crisis?
Buhari promised “permanent peace in the Niger Delta” and a clean up of the polluted water bodies in the area. The opinions are spread evenly in this category as a combined 45.2% say he is barely passing and his performance is ‘satisfactory’. 19% say he is failing while 16.7% say he is excellent.
For this category, Buhari scores a C.
How has Nigeria’s economy fared under Buhari’s administration?
Nigeria’s economy has been bordering on fragility for many years now. During Goodluck Jonathan’s tenure, there was an oil boom and the chance for Nigeria to diversify and strengthen what was and still is a weak economy. Goodluck Jonathan did nothing of the sort, instead, his administration incubated mass looting and heavy corruption. Buhari came into power promising to make things better, but so far, things have only gotten harder, and Buhari’s seemingly authoritarian approach and his refusal to let the CBN operate independently, among several other factors, have seen Nigeria fall into a deep recession, its worst in 25 years.
Over 40% of respondents to this question say Buhari is failing in terms of his promise to strengthen the economy, 22.6% say he is barely passing, while 25% say his performance is satisfactory. Only 2.4% say his performance has been excellent while 9.5% say it has been good.
For this category, Buhari scores an F.
How would you rate his general performance in policy and governance?
As a former dictator and authoritarian, there were always big questions about Buhari’s ability to embrace and function in a democracy. At times, it seems like he has struggled. Under him, freedom of the press in Nigeria hit a new low and his reforms haven’t made any significant dent on the shell of administrative ineptitude that plagues the country.
In response to the question of Buhari’s general performance in policy and governance, 28.6% say he is failing and 25% say he is barely passing. 20.2% say his performance is good, while 19% say it is satisfactory. Only 7.1% say it has been excellent so far.
For this category, Buhari scores an F.
How has Buhari’s administration fared with improving power generation in Nigeria?
The simple question here is, is power supply any better today than it was two years ago? For most participants of this survey, the answer is a resounding ‘No!’.
Of the 84 respondents, 41.7% say he is barely passing while 34.5% say he is failing, 14.3% say his performance is satisfactory, while 7.1% say it is good. Only 2.4% say his performance has been excellent.
For this category, Buhari scores a D.
Here is President Buhari’s midterm report card. Are you proud of him?
