"We in Nigeria have seen just how difficult it is to get back stolen assets from the international financial system, such as banks that ought not have received those funds in the first place if even the most routine questions were asked."

"There is no wisdom of man that can change men or change nations; it is the power and wisdom of God that can."

"Tracing, freezing, and return of stolen assets has proved in many cases to be exceptionally difficult for most African countries."

"Corruption and illicit financial flows are different. But they really must be twinned. This is because, for practical purposes, it is an eminently more sensible approach to treat most of the sources of illicit financial flows as corrupt activity, within a broader use of the term."

"There must be more rigorous enforcement of rules promoting transparency in the international banking and financial systems, especially more stringent KYC rules on customer identity, source of wealth, and even country of origin."

"Here in Nigeria, what makes the news is conflict between the executive and the legislature."

"We all know that Nigerian jollof rice is the best anywhere. We beat the Ghanaians and Senegalese hands down."

"No economy can tolerate the level of corruption seen in Nigeria without consequences."

"Hate speech is a specie of terrorism."

"We don't have all the time in the world with oil. We have to use oil while it makes sense to do so."

"No matter how much you pray or fast, our country cannot grow without some of us deciding to do the hard work that makes nations work."

"I understand the law of sowing and reaping. It is a spiritual law that has tremendous physical implications. Every time that we delay or frustrate what we can do today, leaving it till tomorrow, we hold back the future. We, too, must reap what we have sown by experiencing delays."

"The most successful of the nations of the world are those who do not fall into the lure of secession but who, through thick and thin, forge unity in diversity."

"The truth is that many, if not most, nations of the world are made up of different peoples - and cultures and beliefs and religions - who find themselves thrown together by circumstance."

"Great economies and great nations, prosperity, and abundance of nations and communities are created by men and not spirits."

"If there is one person in Nigeria that believes that petroleum prices should not go up by one naira, it is President Buhari."

"The reason we have Christian president and Muslim vice president or Muslim president and Christian vice president is to have balance."

"It is not possible for one tribe to dominate another based on the way God has structured the country."

"In stabilizing the macroeconomic environment, we have focused on aligning fiscal with monetary policy and nudging the central bank toward the objective of more market-determined exchange rates."

"If this government is doing the right thing by fighting corruption, the Church should support it."

"If the church says you are not allowed to steal, and we will ostracize you in our midst if you did, if what a man has does not measure up to what he has, if we found that a man has more money than he should have, if a man is earning a salary of a civil servant or a public servant and he has houses everywhere, we have to hold him to account."

"Many would say the reason why they steal is because they want to have an arsenal for future political exploits. It is a lie. It is greed. In any case, even if you want to do that, you have no right to do it."

"If the church says we will not accept you here or that we will expose you if you are stealing the resources of the country or stealing the resources of a private company or other establishment, where you work, then we would not have the type of problem that we have in this country. If only the church does so - just the church."

"Our diversity as a people united is also our potential to transform our large deposits of mineral resources and use same for national development."

"Our vision is for a country that grows what it eats and produces what it consumes. It is for a country that no longer has to import petroleum products and develop a lucrative petrochemical industry."

"The most important thing is that we are on the right path, and we will not deviate from it, even in the face of strong temptation to choose temporary gains over long-term benefits."

"If people are stealing the resources of this nation, if people are taking bribes - if judges or persons in authority, whether they are judges or whoever they may be in government, ministers, whoever, if they are taking bribes - it attacks the fundament of our existence as a society."

"You don't have to cheat or steal to be successful in life, but you must be ready to convert your challenges to opportunity."

"The values of integrity and hard work are necessary for the development of our nation."

"Any nation that does not emphasize integrity will always fail."

"Railway network will support efforts to diversify the economy and enhance our export potentials."

"An active and vibrant railway system confers many benefits on the society."

"Nigeria is still grappling with the negative consequences of the use of opacity by senior members of government and their cronies between 1993 and 1998, awarding themselves juicy contracts in the extractive industry."

"With 10 per cent of Nigeria's total land mass, 80 per cent of which is arable, Niger state symbolises the hope and greatness of Nigeria and has potential to feed the continent."

"The fundamental for the sustainable growth of Nigeria is not in the hydro-carbon industry but in agriculture."

"I am so pleased and happy, and I believe that the Almighty God has a plan for our nation by putting us in strategic positions in politics, business, and everywhere."

"The carnal nature of man is that he places his tribe above others, but the only basis for the power and unity of the church is that there is no Jew or Gentile."

"It doesn't matter where one starts from; it doesn't matter at all where you start from. It is how committed you are, how determined you are, and how hardworking you are that will ultimately make the difference."

"But let the word go forth from this time and place that the torch has been passed on to a new generation. A generation that is acutely aware of its unique destiny as the hope of our long-suffering people. A generation that is desperately challenged by the rapid developments taking place all over the world, a generation that is encouraged by all the possibilities of technology, a generation that is determined to earn its place in history; a generation of hope."

"Many times in history, people have voted our people they didn't want and ended up with people they didn't need. But let me assure you that you have not voted out one bad government only to end up with another."

"What we celebrate today is not a victory of party or of individuals. What we celebrate is a beginning as well as an end; a change as well as a restoration. A beginning to end poverty, and misery; a beginning to end ignorance and hopelessness; and a beginning to restore all that is good, beautiful and sublime in our lives as one people under God."

"No matter who you voted for or what your convictions are, government must work for you"

"I promise you that I will lead the fight and employ every God-given resource available to us in turning things around"

"I am determined to grow Nigeria out of poverty"

"We must pull this country back together and rebuild, block by block, with dedication and commitment"

"Africa must ask of the world what is good for Africa; but more importantly, Africans must have the courage to do what is right and necessary for Africa. We must dream the African dreams, if we must be able to tell the African stories in a way that would make other people want to come to us with respect and pride, and not with pity and shame. We have wasted so many years and did many things wrong. But we must not continue to dwell in the past and we must resolve to do the right and march along with the rest of the world."

"More importantly however, is that a new generation of leaders is emerging in Africa who does not want to approach the world with a begging bowl. Leaders who want to engage the world as partners; leaders who are prepared to take responsibilities for the problems of their countries and continent; leaders who recognize the enormous opportunities that abound in the world and are eager to connect Africa to the centres of those opportunities; leaders who want to harness the huge resources of Africa to play on the global stage; leaders who are not content to ask, ‘what can the rest of the world do for us', but rather ‘what can we do with the rest of the world.'"

"I ask you not to expect all answers to all problems from me, even though you expect me to lead the way. I ask you not to expect me to solve all your problems, even though you voted for me to do that. I only ask you to join hands with me to be the best we can be, and together lay foundation for a future that is more secure and certain for our children and generations to come."