“Aside from lawyers, doctors are the next most important professionals. As one rude fellow said, lawyers are usually the cause of people’s medical problems, and doctors benefit from treating them.” Vice President Yemi Osinbajo made these jokes today, Thursday, at the 58th Annual elegates meeting and Science Conference of Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), in Abuja, the nation’s Federal Capital Territory Professor Osinbajo stressed that matter by saying that President Muhammadu Buhari recognized the first place of lawyers by appointing seven lawyers into the Federal Executive Cabinet and were closely followed by four medical doctors in the cabinet. The Vice President acknowledged that doctors have a “never say die” approach to life, but that just when he thought lawyers have won, “we suddenly found a doctor sitting in the position of the President of the lawmakers. By that I mean, the distinguished Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki. We are, however, comforted by the fact that he is now more a legal personality than a doctor. I trust that none of us will take our medical problems to him!” [myad]
In preparation for 2018 Hajj exercise, the management of National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has signed an agreement with Ja’iz Bank of Nigeria (JBN) for collection of Hadaya fees from Nigerian pilgrims for onward delivery to Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Saudi Arabia through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
A statement from the Commission today, Thursday, said that the fee, which does not form part of Hajj fares, is however mandatory for a category of pilgrims planning to observe certain types of Hajj rites.
The statement listed those who were present at the signing that took place at the NAHCON headquarters to include the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Jaí’iz Bank Nigeria, Hassan Usman, the Deputy Managing Director of the bank,. Mahe Abubakar, Company Secretary, Ms. Rukayyat Salaudeen and one of the bank’s branch managers, Yusuf Isa Jonge.
In his submission the NAHCON’s commissioner of Policy, Personnel Management and Finance, The chairman of the NAHCON, Barrister Mkhtar Abdullahi, represented by Dr. Yusuf Adebayo Ibrahim, asked JBN to ensure that a receipt is issued to each pilgrim that pays for Hadaya.
He said that doing so has many advantages as it will promote transparency, blocks loopholes against fraudsters and help to build people’s confidence in the process.
He observed that most pilgrims are not computer literate and therefore, cannot have access to their online receipts even as he requested Ja’iz bank to ensure that pilgrims who want share of the rams they use for sacrifice should be given.
In his response, the JBN Managing Director reassured NAHCON of the bank’s credibility, transparency and dedicated service to its clients even where the profit is meager.
He assured that despite that IDB only issues electronic receipts to its clients through short message service (SMS), the bank will explore other ways to print receipts for individual pilgrims instead of the past practice where they print bulk receipts for states. [myad]
The embattled Senator Dino, representating Kogi West Senatorial District in the red chambers, has been remanded in prison till June 11.
Melaye was ordered remanded in prison by
A Magistrate Court in Lokoja, Kogi State ordered the Senator to be sent to prison while deciding a case of gun running, conspiracy and aiding of jail break by the police.
Dino Melaye had earlier been driven to Lokoja from Abuja by the police in an ambulance. [myad]
This note is written by one who is mindful of the fact that there are Nigerians, I mean the opponents of this administration, who have prayed and prayed very hard that our President in the course of his historic visit to the White House on Monday, April 30, 2018, would stumble badly or come back with nothing.
President Buhari, to the disappointment of this group, delivered a calm, brilliant performance. He refused to be provoked and did not get angry at the taunting. He instead turned his attention to the task at hand and at the end, came home satisfied that he got everything he wanted from the US administration. The Rose Garden worked out very much for him as a routine engagement, certainly not like the make-or-break meeting as some wanted it to be.
It is also important that records be set straight to counter the mischief of opponents, some of whom have started rendering false narratives of a meeting to which they were neither invited nor in any way aware of its details.
The meeting of the two leaders happened in three phases.
First, the one-on-one in which only the two of them were present. Then they had a working lunch, each leader accompanied by ten top officials. President Buhari had with him the Governors of Ogun and Plateau; the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Justice, Industry, Trade and Investment; the Chairpersons of Senate and House of Representatives committees on international relations; the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, NIA; the Chief of Defence Staff and Nigeria’s Ambassador to the United States.
The US President had more-or-less the same representation, except that the Secretary of State who just got cleared for the job by the Senate hadn’t assumed so he was represented by the Deputy Secretary of State.
President Trump also brought with him the Director of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) which I must emphasize, is significant to Nigeria given the fact that the U.S. remains the largest contributor to the on-going effort to reconstruct the Northeast and resettle its millions of displaced persons.
The third engagement involving the two leaders was the joint press conference by the leaders, aired live by some major TV networks across the world.
What did the meetings achieve?
First of all, it is important to state that from the very beginning, the two leaders got on very well with one another. They also shared a common respect for each other.
Some key remarks made by President Trump on our president sum this up:
He said President Buhari “is a rare leader”; he said “I respect him a lot” and said our leader had “succeeded in cutting down corruption”. He called President Buhari a “valued partner” and a “strong democrat.”
The two parties had agreed before the meeting that discussions will be on three key issues namely Security/Counter Terrorism, Trade, and Development of Democracy in Nigeria.
On security, the Nigerian delegation was pleased from the onset that the Trump administration had agreed to the major sale of military equipment to Nigeria. Team Nigeria was equally pleased about the much-increased role of the US in assisting the efforts to defeat terrorism in Nigeria and the Lake Chad region in general.
The President expressed appreciation for these and requested additional support to counter insurgency.
On the specific issue of the sale of the 12 Super Tucano A-29 warplanes and weapons to Nigeria to effectively fight terrorism, President Buhari told his American counterpart that we are pleased with this, but want delivery to be fast-tracked, given the security situation in the country.
Expectedly, President Trump said yes to this, and, additionally promised the sale of helicopters and about just everything President Buhari wanted.
Still on President Buhari’s meeting with Trump, it is important to explain the context of the remarks by President Trump where he was quoted as saying the U.S is concerned about the murder or killing, as he put it, of Christians. At the press conference, President Trump towards the end of his remarks, at the briefing, mentioned the protection of ‘‘innocent civilians of all faiths, including Muslims and Christians’’, which reporters left out.
In his remarks, the US President neither chided nor talked down on President Buhari. Saying that “we will do something about that,” is a clear expression of willingness to support Nigeria to bring to an end the unwanted killings. This is contrary to the press reporting which jumped on the issue, conveying a wrong impression that President Trump was only concerned about the lives of Christians. He mentioned Muslim lives as well.
Equally wrong was the hasty condemnation of the U.S. President by some Muslim groups in the country without the benefit of a full view and understanding of what was said and the context in which it was said.
The President also conveyed the country’s appreciation for the U.S. support for the humanitarian situation in the Northeast, with a contribution of 500 million US Dollars in cash and in-kind contributions, the highest by anyone, through the United Nations and other inter-governmental organizations.
But the scope of work to be done is larger than anyone had envisaged and Nigeria wanted the US to do more. President Trump didn’t say no, only that he wanted more access to the Nigerian market for their agricultural goods.
“For a country which we assist with USD 1 billion dollars every year, you must do more to open the market to us,” Trump said. These are matters to be debated and resolved.
This leads us to the next important issue- Trade. Pointedly, President Trump did not mince words when he said: ‘‘President Buhari has also taken several steps to fight corruption and improve the Nigerian business climate. And most of all to me — and again — is ripping down those trade barriers. These measures will make it easier for Nigeria and the United States companies to invest. And we will be investing substantially in Nigeria if they can create that level playing field that we have to very much ask for, and maybe demand.’’
In acknowledging the efforts of President Buhari and the significance of the Nigerian economy on the continent of Africa, President Trump promised to grow trade and commercial ties between the two countries to create wealth and jobs for the benefit of their citizens.
Talks were also held between the Nigerian delegation and American Chief Executive Officers, who came from across various industries especially agriculture, digital economy and increasing value additions to locally produced raw materials.
Some of the broad level discussions on the business side included the planned coming of a John Deer tractor assembly plant to produce 10,000 tractors, which will certainly create thousands of jobs in Nigeria. Also on the table were several investment proposals across the food value chain including the production of chemicals for crop protection; a large-scale seed production company in Nigeria; a food ingredients company that will, among others set up an oilseed crushing plant with a capacity for about 50 million tons and a business engagement with local partners for the facilitation of international merchandising of local farm produce, serving as a firm assurance of buyer at the time of harvest.
There are plans by the Dangote Group and others for new partnerships to bring research and high yielding crop varieties that have seen increases elsewhere from two to six tons of maize and two to seven tons of rice per acreage as achieved in Brazil and other countries.
Other new businesses proposed at the meetings included the setting up of consumer products by big giants like Proctor and Gamble, a refinery in Ogun, Burger King food chain and a plant for the production of Heinz tomato products, in all cases, walking back to integrate local producers of raw materials.
With the blessing of the two leaders, assets recovery is also getting a major boost. The Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami was directed to sit down with Jeff Sessions, his US counterpart to have a roadmap for the recovery of USD 500 million of Nigerian stolen assets hidden in the US. They will also finalize on the return of USD 1 million of the Diepreye Alamieyeseigha loot.
Immediately after the bilateral engagement, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama and Minister of Justice, Malami, met with their U.S. counterparts. In the months ahead, the Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah, will also meet with his U.S. counterpart, Wilbur Ross.
If the trip to the White House is to be judged according to its set objectives, there is nowhere it came short as some saucy opponents have said. President Buhari got everything we wanted from President Donald Trump.
When he was asked if Nigeria had succeeded in getting American to buy more of our oil, President Buhari said he did not. We have others buying our oil. Must we sell to a particular buyer?
This government will smartly work with the current American government, knowing that American interests are not always ours, as a strategic partner on security, anti-corruption economic growth and job creation.
Garba Shehu is the Senior Special Assistant to the President, Media & Publicity. [myad]
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced the execution of a bilateral currency swap agreement with the Peoples Bank of China (PBoC).
A statement by the Acting Director in the Corporate Communications, Isaac Okorafor said that the Governor of the CBN, Godwin Emefiele, led CBN officials while PBoC Governor, Dr. Yi Gang, led the Chinese team at the official signing ceremony in Beijing, China, on Friday.
The signing, according to Okorafor, was a culmination of over two years of painstaking negotiations by both Central Banks.
He said that the transaction, which is valued at Renminbi (RMB) 16 billion about $2.5 billion), is aimed at providing adequate local currency liquidity to Nigerian and Chinese industrialists and other businesses thereby reducing the difficulties encountered in the search for third currencies.
He listed other benefits of the agreement to include providing Naira liquidity to Chinese businesses and providing RMB liquidity to Nigerian businesses respectively, thereby improving the speed, convenience and volume of transactions between the two countries.
“It will also assist both countries in their foreign exchange reserves management, enhance financial stability and promote broader economic cooperation between the two countries.
“With the operationalisation of this agreement, it will be easier for most Nigerian manufacturers, especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and cottage industries in manufacturing and export businesses to import raw materials, spare-parts and simple machinery to undertake their businesses by taking advantage of available RMB liquidity from Nigerian banks without
being exposed to the difficulties of seeking other scarce foreign currencies.
“The deal, which is purely an exchange of currencies, will also make it easier for Chinese manufacturers seeking to buy raw materials from Nigeria to obtain enough Naira from banks in China to pay for their imports from Nigeria. Indeed, the deal will protect Nigerian business people from the harsh effects of third currency fluctuations.
With this, Nigeria becomes the third African country to have such an agreement in place with the PBoC.
“Both the Nigerian and Chinese officials expressed delight at the conclusion and signing of the agreement and expressed the hope that it would boost mutually beneficial business transactions between Nigeria and the Peoples Republic of China.” [myad]
The Nigerian Police Force has charged Senator Dino Melaye, representing Kogi West Senatorial Area, before a Chief Magistrate Court in Abuja for attempting to commit suicide by jumping out of a vehicle conveying him to Lokoja to face criminal allegations against him.
Dino Melaye who was wheeled inside the dock in a stretcher, pleaded not guilty to the charge and was granted bail by the court to the tune of N90 million.
The First Information Report (FIR) read before Magistrate Segun-Bello, alleged that on April 24, about 1330hrs at Area One round-about Abuja: “You Senator Dino Melaye of the Federal Republic of Nigeria while being conveyed in a Police White Hilux Bus with Registration number NPF 3354 D to Lokoja Kogi State to be arraigned in Court for Conspiracy and Unlawful Possession of Prohibited Firearms in Charge Number CMCL/14SC/2018 filed at the Chief Magistrate Court Lokoja, you Senator Dino Melaye intentionally broke the side windscreen of the Bus and jumped out of the bus after it was blocked by a Hilux Vehicle with registration number Kaduna MKA 603 GY occupied by your younger brother Samuel Melaye and one Barrister Amefula David Emeka and driven by yet to be unidentified person who escaped from the scene after the blockade.
“You Senator Dino Melaye after breaking the side windscreen attempted to kill yourself by jumping out of the bus and fell on the ground and thereafter started shouting that you want to kill yourself and implicate the Police for your death.
“That Police Officers who were escorting you in the bus tried to re-arrest you and bring you back to the bus but you resisted further arrest with the help of your brother Samuel Melaye and some lawyers in your company and further threatened to injure the Police officers if they try to further arrest you and you finally escaped from the scene in another Hilux vehicle”. It maintained that the lawmaker committed an offence punishable under Sections 148, 153, 172, 173, 231 and 326 of the Penal Code Act. [myad]
Solar Turbine Team Paid A Courtsey Call On The Group Managing Director (GMD) Nigeria National Peteoleum Corporation (NNPC), In Houston, On Thursday. The Team Was Led By Its Sole Distributor/Authorized Representative In Nigeria Chief Lee Ikpea, President Mr. Pablo Koziner, Vice President Mark Keith, Managing Director Southern Europe, Africa And Middle East Mr. Jean-Marc Cocheteux And Managing Director Sales Africa Southern Europe, Mr. Sam Davies And General Manager Business And Relations, Lee Engineering Mr. Godwin Abhulimen. [myad]
For the All Progressives Congress, (APC), the July 14 gubernatorial election in Ekiti is like the epic battle of two bitter, ancient football rivals. In the first finals, the prejudiced referee acted like a striker, midfielder and linesman for one side. In this new battle, the once defeated side now has another chance for a rematch without the hindrance of a partisan referee. This time around, the incumbent, Mr AyodeleFayose and his crony, Mr OlusolaElenka will no longer have free kick of the ball. The Federal might, which has always been Fayose’s spring, now hosts his imminent pitfall. But one big mistake is for the once defeated side to field the same team, use the same strategy without tactical alteration. Figuratively, the defeated team is currently choosing its line-up. On May 5, its captain will be picked.
Four years after the defeat of the All Progressives Congress, (APC), the party is desperate to reclaim a battered image. However, even with the assumed backing of the Federal authorities, the defeat of Mr Fayose and his crony is not given. The possibility of APC dodging another devastating downfall depends on who wins the primary election slated for this Saturday. While Fayose has given a clear direction on his path, the APC is enmeshed on a riotous, trampling race that may produce a candidate who may be another Fayose’s piecemeal. This is the grave error that APC leadership might commit. This is the dangerous path they might take to the party’s peril. To win the election, the APC has the historic responsibility to organize a primary that is not driven by cash nor motivated by the short-sightedness of a few cabal in the core-North who has been rumoured to be hell-bent on influencing the primary with enormous resources to the detriment of long term stability and prosperity of the commonwealth.
To win the main election, APC needs a sharp break from the past. The party needs a bold, decisive, courageous and iron-cast figure whose sneeze will send Fayose scampering. The party also needs a candidate that will not betray the party. In the context of the realignment on-going in the country, there is the fact that an APC candidate without long standing ideology may be swayed to lead an onslaught against the same APC in the coming years. There are indeed real dangers that Fayose actually has a mole or moles among the aspirants. This is the reason why flirtatious politicians-and some of them are contestants in the APC primary-with a rich history of promiscuity and ambivalence, must be avoided like a plague. It is better to hack them now, despite their pretences, than to have to live with the atrocities they will hatch.
Apart from these considerations, the APC leadership must be awake to the political realities in Eikiti State without which the party will commit dreadful errors that will make her flounder and be washed away like feeble grains. In the first place, the APC needs to pick the candidate with the highest propensity to win the governorship race. A key consideration is to understand the balance of political forces, voter’s strength, where it is most potent and the history of voting patterns in the state.
Already, Fayose has scored a key political point by picking his candidate from Ikere, a key city in Ekiti. How does the APC counter this move? There are 2, 195 polling units in Ekiti State. Out of this, Ikere has 86 polling units. The number of registered voters in Ikere is 65,000. The possibility of Ekiti APC producing an Ikere candidate in the next primary has been hampered by the fact that five APC candidates have emerged from this historic town. Though Dr WoleOluyede was unanimously agreed by a powerful section in the city, the other four have spat defiantly in the sky and captured the sputum, in anger, with a splash on their faces. The four are going ahead with equal momentum.
Ikere also has to contend with cultural divisions occasioned by the gulf along her polarized traditional institutions. Ekiti South has the highest aspirants of 11; Oye council is the next with the highest number of 5; Ekiti central 7; North 7; Gbonyin 3; Ekiti East 2; IseOrun 2; IrepodunIfelodun 2; Ijero 2; IdoOsi; Ekiti East 2; Emure 2. In all, there are 33 aspirants out of which 27 have been cleared by the screening committee. Considering the balance of forces, all the 27 aspirants will have to scramble for delegates in 15 LGs, except Ado which has only one aspirant, Senator BabafemiOjudu. Ikere for instance will split between 5 candidates. Ido-Osi will be a battle ground between two aspirants. Oye where Dr KayodeFayemi, Senator Ayo Arise, Bimbo Daramola and others come from will be fiercely contested by 5 aspirants.
The only LG that stands out is Ado, with 182 delegates, by far the highest in the entire state and the most cohesive. Ikere has about 56 delegates. Ado Ekiti, where Senator BabafemiOjudu comes from will be going as one team. From the prism of logic and common sense, all what Ado needs is to win pockets of support from other LGs to clinch the trophy. There is no doubt that a candidate from Ado will strengthen the potential of APC winning the July 14 poll.
Traditionally, Ado has always been the most remarkable electoral determinant of Ekiti voting outlook.
At the advent of electoral politics in Ekiti history, it took some time for the Action Group, (AG) to be able to penetrate the entire Ekiti province for no other reason that the initial Ado support for the NCNC. Not until the trend was broken was AG, which came to Ado in the 1940s, able to overwhelm Ekiti area.
In 1955, for instance, one of the first major political contests took place between Awodimula from Ode Ekiti, Chief Familoni from IdoEkiti and JE Babatola from Ado Ekiti. Babatola won in the AG primary and won the main election.
In 2003 elections, OtunbaNiyi Adebayo won in 12 of the 16 LGs. Fayose turned the table with votes from Ado. No election has been held in Ekiti State without Ado being the major pathfinder. In the last election for instance, Ado had 137,155 out of 733,766 registered voters trailed by IrepodunIfelodun 54,085; Ijero 49,417 votes, Ikole 49, 390; Ekiti East 47, 288 and Ikere with a distant 45,611.
Ado had 59,480 votes, Ijero 26, 589; Ikole 26, 252 with Ikere at a distant 25,889. There is the fear that irrespective of the contradictions, if APC picks a candidate from Ikere, the votes will be shared decisively between the APC and the PDP whose candidate is also from Ikere. Picking a candidate elsewhere apart from Ado will strengthen Fayose who is waiting in the wings to pick his deputy from Ado-Ekiti. The only way to neutralize him is to pick the APC candidate from Ado.
Primary elections are often determined first by kinsman loyalty of delegates. As it is, Ado presents a strategic posting as the most audacious bride.While Ikere has not produced a governor in Ekiti, it has produced the governor of old Ondo State. Ado has neither produced the Governor of Ekiti nor the governor of old Ondo State. Most of most significant towns have cultural and blood-bound ties with Ado. The cultural institutions in Ado historically has unprecedented network across the towns and villages in Ekiti which has been energized since Ojudu joined the race for overwhelming victory. It must be noted that in the past, Ado often deliberately play the role of the kingmaker by refusing to produce a governorship aspirant, but this time around, the entire city with a zeal and determination never before seen, has chosen Senator Ojudu as the one and only aspirant on the platform of the APC. Good enough for the APC, Ojudu has a rich history of radical struggle, consistency, bravery, iron-cast nerve and infact, he is the lion that can scare stiff Fayose and his agent. He performed this same feat in 2011 when he scored 64,000 plus votes in the Senatorial election dusting Fayose almost thrice. Certainly, the clincher of the APC will be to pick its candidate from Ado-Ekiti. Omission of this calculation will be another costly error that may plunge the APC into another whirlwind of regret and defeat. Fayose is like a vulture, hovering to see if on May 5, APC will bring forth another carcass in the form of a weakling that will give him another cheap victory. A candidate from Ado is one sure way to cut down the PDP like grass and make it wither like a flower without nurture. The APC leadership has the choice to make or mar. [myad]
President Muhammadu Buhari has reassured Nigerian media that his government has no intention of gagging it even as he asked it to always ensure fairness in reporting issues in the country.
The President, whose spokesman, Femi Adesina issued a statement to mark the World Press Freedom Day, which is observed every May 3, pledged an unfettered environment for the media to do its work, stressing however that responsibility is reciprocal, which journalists should be mindful of with a view to maintain fairness, justice and national interest at all times.
Reflecting on this year’s theme: Keeping Power In Check: Media, Justice and The Rule of Law, the President re-affirmed his commitment to an atmosphere in which the media is free from harassment or any form of attack in the exercise of the profession, within the ambit of the law.
“The media can count on us to keep our words, but we also want to be fairly reported. The media should hold ethics of the noble profession sacrosanct, and be wary of those bent on causing disaffection in the country.”
President Buhari agreed that a positively critical media is vital to national development, and the growth of democracy, but that a media that cavils will only generate unwarranted tension in a plural society like ours.
“The world is in the throes of animosities generated by fake news and hate speech, often spawned by some media, particularly the digital variant called social media. On this World Press Freedom Day, those involved in the negative antics should reflect, and ponder on how some countries have been thrown into tailspin by irresponsible use of the media. We have no other country than Nigeria, and what we make of it is what we get,” the President says.
“As we approach general elections next year, let our journalists resolve to report the process fairly and without bias, irrespective of who is involved. That would be the very essence of World Press Freedom Day.” [myad]
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has again, injected the sum of $210 million into the inter-bank Foreign Exchange market in continuation of its efforts to sustain liquidity in the market.
The apex Bank offered the sum of $100 million to authorized dealers in the wholesale segment of the market. The Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) segment received the sum of $55 million while the sum of $55 million was apportioned to invisibles such as tuition fees, medical payments and Basic Travel Allowance (BTA)
A statement from the Bank’s Acting Director, Corporate Communications Department, Isaac Okorafor, reiterated CBN’s capacity to continue to sustain the foreign exchange intervention.
Okorafor urged Deposit Money Banks to continue to honour requests from customers with genuine needs, noting that the Bank will continue to sustain liquidity in the foreign exchange market.
Meanwhile, the nation’s currency continued today, Wednesday, to maintain its stability in the FOREX market, exchanging at an average of N362/$1 in the BDC segment of the market. [myad]
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For the All Progressives Congress, (APC), the July 14 gubernatorial election in Ekiti is like the epic battle of two bitter, ancient football rivals. In the first finals, the prejudiced referee acted like a striker, midfielder and linesman for one side. In this new battle, the once defeated side now has another chance for a rematch without the hindrance of a partisan referee. This time around, the incumbent, Mr AyodeleFayose and his crony, Mr OlusolaElenka will no longer have free kick of the ball. The Federal might, which has always been Fayose’s spring, now hosts his imminent pitfall. But one big mistake is for the once defeated side to field the same team, use the same strategy without tactical alteration. Figuratively, the defeated team is currently choosing its line-up. On May 5, its captain will be picked.
Takeaways From Meeting Between Buhari And Trump, By Garba Shehu
This note is written by one who is mindful of the fact that there are Nigerians, I mean the opponents of this administration, who have prayed and prayed very hard that our President in the course of his historic visit to the White House on Monday, April 30, 2018, would stumble badly or come back with nothing.
President Buhari, to the disappointment of this group, delivered a calm, brilliant performance. He refused to be provoked and did not get angry at the taunting. He instead turned his attention to the task at hand and at the end, came home satisfied that he got everything he wanted from the US administration. The Rose Garden worked out very much for him as a routine engagement, certainly not like the make-or-break meeting as some wanted it to be.
It is also important that records be set straight to counter the mischief of opponents, some of whom have started rendering false narratives of a meeting to which they were neither invited nor in any way aware of its details.
The meeting of the two leaders happened in three phases.
First, the one-on-one in which only the two of them were present. Then they had a working lunch, each leader accompanied by ten top officials. President Buhari had with him the Governors of Ogun and Plateau; the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Justice, Industry, Trade and Investment; the Chairpersons of Senate and House of Representatives committees on international relations; the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, NIA; the Chief of Defence Staff and Nigeria’s Ambassador to the United States.
The US President had more-or-less the same representation, except that the Secretary of State who just got cleared for the job by the Senate hadn’t assumed so he was represented by the Deputy Secretary of State.
President Trump also brought with him the Director of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) which I must emphasize, is significant to Nigeria given the fact that the U.S. remains the largest contributor to the on-going effort to reconstruct the Northeast and resettle its millions of displaced persons.
The third engagement involving the two leaders was the joint press conference by the leaders, aired live by some major TV networks across the world.
What did the meetings achieve?
First of all, it is important to state that from the very beginning, the two leaders got on very well with one another. They also shared a common respect for each other.
Some key remarks made by President Trump on our president sum this up:
He said President Buhari “is a rare leader”; he said “I respect him a lot” and said our leader had “succeeded in cutting down corruption”. He called President Buhari a “valued partner” and a “strong democrat.”
The two parties had agreed before the meeting that discussions will be on three key issues namely Security/Counter Terrorism, Trade, and Development of Democracy in Nigeria.
On security, the Nigerian delegation was pleased from the onset that the Trump administration had agreed to the major sale of military equipment to Nigeria. Team Nigeria was equally pleased about the much-increased role of the US in assisting the efforts to defeat terrorism in Nigeria and the Lake Chad region in general.
The President expressed appreciation for these and requested additional support to counter insurgency.
On the specific issue of the sale of the 12 Super Tucano A-29 warplanes and weapons to Nigeria to effectively fight terrorism, President Buhari told his American counterpart that we are pleased with this, but want delivery to be fast-tracked, given the security situation in the country.
Expectedly, President Trump said yes to this, and, additionally promised the sale of helicopters and about just everything President Buhari wanted.
Still on President Buhari’s meeting with Trump, it is important to explain the context of the remarks by President Trump where he was quoted as saying the U.S is concerned about the murder or killing, as he put it, of Christians. At the press conference, President Trump towards the end of his remarks, at the briefing, mentioned the protection of ‘‘innocent civilians of all faiths, including Muslims and Christians’’, which reporters left out.
In his remarks, the US President neither chided nor talked down on President Buhari. Saying that “we will do something about that,” is a clear expression of willingness to support Nigeria to bring to an end the unwanted killings. This is contrary to the press reporting which jumped on the issue, conveying a wrong impression that President Trump was only concerned about the lives of Christians. He mentioned Muslim lives as well.
Equally wrong was the hasty condemnation of the U.S. President by some Muslim groups in the country without the benefit of a full view and understanding of what was said and the context in which it was said.
The President also conveyed the country’s appreciation for the U.S. support for the humanitarian situation in the Northeast, with a contribution of 500 million US Dollars in cash and in-kind contributions, the highest by anyone, through the United Nations and other inter-governmental organizations.
But the scope of work to be done is larger than anyone had envisaged and Nigeria wanted the US to do more. President Trump didn’t say no, only that he wanted more access to the Nigerian market for their agricultural goods.
“For a country which we assist with USD 1 billion dollars every year, you must do more to open the market to us,” Trump said. These are matters to be debated and resolved.
This leads us to the next important issue- Trade. Pointedly, President Trump did not mince words when he said: ‘‘President Buhari has also taken several steps to fight corruption and improve the Nigerian business climate. And most of all to me — and again — is ripping down those trade barriers. These measures will make it easier for Nigeria and the United States companies to invest. And we will be investing substantially in Nigeria if they can create that level playing field that we have to very much ask for, and maybe demand.’’
In acknowledging the efforts of President Buhari and the significance of the Nigerian economy on the continent of Africa, President Trump promised to grow trade and commercial ties between the two countries to create wealth and jobs for the benefit of their citizens.
Talks were also held between the Nigerian delegation and American Chief Executive Officers, who came from across various industries especially agriculture, digital economy and increasing value additions to locally produced raw materials.
Some of the broad level discussions on the business side included the planned coming of a John Deer tractor assembly plant to produce 10,000 tractors, which will certainly create thousands of jobs in Nigeria. Also on the table were several investment proposals across the food value chain including the production of chemicals for crop protection; a large-scale seed production company in Nigeria; a food ingredients company that will, among others set up an oilseed crushing plant with a capacity for about 50 million tons and a business engagement with local partners for the facilitation of international merchandising of local farm produce, serving as a firm assurance of buyer at the time of harvest.
There are plans by the Dangote Group and others for new partnerships to bring research and high yielding crop varieties that have seen increases elsewhere from two to six tons of maize and two to seven tons of rice per acreage as achieved in Brazil and other countries.
Other new businesses proposed at the meetings included the setting up of consumer products by big giants like Proctor and Gamble, a refinery in Ogun, Burger King food chain and a plant for the production of Heinz tomato products, in all cases, walking back to integrate local producers of raw materials.
With the blessing of the two leaders, assets recovery is also getting a major boost. The Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami was directed to sit down with Jeff Sessions, his US counterpart to have a roadmap for the recovery of USD 500 million of Nigerian stolen assets hidden in the US. They will also finalize on the return of USD 1 million of the Diepreye Alamieyeseigha loot.
Immediately after the bilateral engagement, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama and Minister of Justice, Malami, met with their U.S. counterparts. In the months ahead, the Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah, will also meet with his U.S. counterpart, Wilbur Ross.
If the trip to the White House is to be judged according to its set objectives, there is nowhere it came short as some saucy opponents have said. President Buhari got everything we wanted from President Donald Trump.
When he was asked if Nigeria had succeeded in getting American to buy more of our oil, President Buhari said he did not. We have others buying our oil. Must we sell to a particular buyer?
This government will smartly work with the current American government, knowing that American interests are not always ours, as a strategic partner on security, anti-corruption economic growth and job creation.
Garba Shehu is the Senior Special Assistant to the President, Media & Publicity. [myad]