President Muhammadu Buhari has urged Nigerians to be patient with democracy and accept it as a lifestyle and not as a system of government.
Democracy, he said, should be a lifestyle towards ensuring development of the country.
Buhari made the remark when he paid homage to the Emir of Daura, Alhaji Umar Faruk Umar on Friday after attending the Juma’at prayer at the Low Cost Mosque in Daura, Katsina State.
He said: “If Nigerians continuously follows the tenets of democracy the country will always be at peace since democracy on its own with its institutions has the mechanism for resolving conflicts peacefully.”
Speaking in Hausa language, he urged those who were aggrieved after the 2015 elections to seek redress through democratic means and institutions.
According to him, Nigeria was adopting democracy from the western nations and learning fast by avoiding mistakes made when studying the weaknesses and strengths of those nations.
He noted that some avoidable mistakes can be made if Nigerians decide to be hasty.
Stressing that election at all levels must be conducted based on democratic principles, he urged those interested in elective positions to look for a political platform of their choice, declare their interests and the party would support them.
He said that many people did not give him a chance in 2002 when he joined politics because they knew his antecedents as a military officer.
According to him, he decided to contest elections because of his commitment to serve the people and not to be served or to amass wealth.
He said that the 2015 polls had clearly shown that it is God that chooses who becomes a leader.
He said: “It is not by power, it is not by wealth but by the Grace of God that I won the election.”
Despite serving the nation in different capacities in the past, he said that he had not had so much money in the banks either locally or anywhere in the world.
He said that all he has is “integrity and commitment to serve the people’’
Buhari said that he would fulfill his promises to the people.
Speaking earlier, the Emir of Daura, Alhaji Umar Faruk Umar, said he had known Buhari for his consistency which had become the hallmark of his integrity.
He said he was happy that Buhari was eventually elected as the President of the country after some trials.
He said Buhari was not new in government and wherever he had served he always distinguished himself with integrity and in all he had returned home penniless.
The Emir urged Nigerians to be patient with the administration so that they could allow Buhari to deliver on his promises; he sought Nigerians’ support to the administration with prayers for Buhari in his new responsibility.
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