President Muhammadu Buhari addressing the UN General Assembly at the 70th UN general Assembly Submit on 25th Sept 2015
“We intend to tackle inequalities arising from massive unemployment and previous government policies favouring a few people to the detriment of the many. We intend to emphasize quality technological education for development and lay foundation for comprehensive care of the aged, the disadvantaged and the infirm. But for now terrorism is the immediate problem.
Read President Muhammadu Buhari full address:
President of the General Assembly, Secretary–General Your Excellencies Heads of State and Governments Distinguished Delegates Ladies and Gentlemen,
I would like, Mr. President, on behalf of the Government and people of Nigeria, to congratulate you and your country on your election to preside over the 70th session of the U.N. General Assembly.
May I also express appreciation to your predecessor, Mr. Sam Kahamba Kutesa and the Secretary General Mr. Ban Ki-moon both of whom worked tirelessly to ensure proper articulation of the post-2015 Development Agenda and to maintain the focus and commitment to the ideals of the United Nations. I thank Mr. Ban Ki-moon for his recent visit to Nigeria when we held very useful discussions. Mr. President,
Fifty-five (55) years ago almost to the day, my great predecessor, Nigeria’s first Prime Minister, Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa stood on this forum to declare Nigeria’s desire to develop and maintain friendly relations with all countries. He also assured the world of our country’s commitment to uphold the principles upon which the United Nations was founded.
Mr. President, my country, Nigeria, has lived by this conviction, even when judgement went against us in territorial disputes with our neighbours. We respected those judgements and abided by them as a mark of respect for the rule of law and the charter of this organization. Nigeria’s record in the U.N. peacekeeping is second to none. I myself as a young officer in the Nigerian Army did tours of duty in Congo and the Lebanon.
Nigeria has contributed to U.N. peacekeeping efforts in Ethiopia, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Darfur. Furthermore, we are proud of our contributions to other activities of the U.N. including the Peace Building Commission, the Human Rights Council and security sector reform. Mr. President,
We are gratified to note that most countries have pledged commitment to the post-2015 Development Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with their means of implementation. The successor frameworks of the MDGs have come, Mr. President, with lofty aspirations and if I may say so, heroic assumptions! Nonetheless, they target development cooperation by the international community up to the year 2020. And they deserve universal support.
This is because the SDGs mirror the hopes and aspirations of much of the world.
I should stress that for the newly adopted SDGs to be truly global, they must be practical. In this regard, the SDGs’ core objectives of poverty eradication and reducing inequalities must be met within the framework of a revitalized global partnership support by concrete policies and actions as outlined in the Addis Ababa Action Agenda.
Luckily, these two core objectives of the SDGs are precisely at the centre of Nigeria’s new Administration’s agenda. It must be emphasized, Mr. President, that Foreign Direct Investment supplemented where suitable by Official Development Assistance as outlined in the Addis Ababa Agenda are necessary, though not sufficient, conditions for accelerated development in countries that are trying to catch up.
In this connexion, I would like to appeal to industrialized countries to redeem their pledge of earmarking 0.7% (nought point seven percent) of their GDP to development assistance. With the sole exception of the UK, all concerned countries have, I am told to meet the UN requirement. But, Mr. President, with SDGs we have the opportunity to improve the lives of people not just in the developing world but in all nations.
The Secretary General himself has grouped the SDGs into what he calls six “essential elements” namely:
Dignity
Prosperity
Justice
Partnership
Planet
People
As a prerequisite to these and as we look at history and remember the terrible events that gave rise to the birth of the United Nations in 1945, I would like to propose a seventh:
PEACE
Peace, Mr. President, is close to the hearts of Nigerians, as we are in the front line in the war on terror. Boko Haram’s war against the people of Nigeria, Chad, Niger and Cameroon may not attract as much worldwide attention as the wars in the Middle East but the suffering is just as great and the human cost is equally high.
This is a war about values between progress and chaos; between democracy and the rule of law. Boko Haram celebrates violence against the weak and the innocent and deplorably, they hide behind their perverted interpretation of Islam. Boko Haram is as far away from Islam as any one can think of.
Many of my colleagues attending this forum would want to know how our new government intends to tackle the huge problems the government has inherited. Friends of Nigeria and foreign investor partners will be encouraged to know that the new Government is attacking the problems we inherited head-on.
We intend to tackle inequalities arising from massive unemployment and previous government policies favouring a few people to the detriment of the many. We intend to emphasize quality technological education for development and lay foundation for comprehensive care of the aged, the disadvantaged and the infirm. But for now terrorism is the immediate problem.
Accordingly, Mr. President, Members of the General Assembly, the new Nigerian Government which I have the honour to head, moved with dispatch to put in a bold and robust strategy to defeat Boko Haram. Nigeria and her neighbours Cameroon, Chad and Niger plus Benin are working together to face this common threat within the regional framework of the Lake Chad Basin Commission. We have established a multinational joint task force to confront, degrade and defeat Boko Haram.
We have driven them away from many of their strongholds, killed or captured many of their operatives or commanders and freed several hundreds of hostages.
Mr. President, one of our major aims is to rescue the Chibok girls alive and unharmed. We are working round the clock to ensure their safety and eventual reunion with their families. Chibok girls are constantly on our minds and in our plans.
Mr. President, terrorism is by no means the major or the only evil threatening and undermining the wellbeing of societies around the world.
Corruption
Cross border financial crimes
Cyber crimes
Human trafficking
Spread of communicable diseases
Climate change
Proliferation of weapons
are all major challenges of the 21st century which the international community must tackle collectively. Let me reaffirm Nigerian government’s unwavering commitment to fight corruption and illicit financial flows. By any consideration, corruption and cross border financial crimes are impediments to development, economic growth, and the realization of the wellbeing of citizens across the globe.
Nigeria is ready and willing to partner with international agencies and individual countries on a bilateral basis to confront crimes and corruption. In particular, I call upon the global community to urgently redouble efforts towards strengthening the mechanisms for dismantling safe havens for proceeds of corruption and ensuring the return of stolen funds and assets to their countries of origin.
Mr. President, the world is now facing a big new challenge: human trafficking. This is an old evil taking an altogether new and dangerous dimension threatening to upset international relationships. We in Africa are grieved to see on international networks how hundreds of thousands of our able bodied men and women fleeing to Europe and in the process thousands dying in the desert or drowning in the Mediterranean.
We condemn in the strongest terms these people traffickers and will support any measures to apprehend and bring them to justice. At the same time, we are very appreciative of European governments notably Italy and Germany, for their understanding and humane treatment of these refugees.
Last year, our continent faced the dreadful occurrence of Ebola. We sincerely thank the international community for the collective efforts to contain this deadly disease. We are not out of the woods yet but we would like to record our appreciation to the United States, United Kingdom, France and China for their outstanding assistance in arresting the spread of Ebola and care of those infected in collaboration with host countries.
Mr. President,
Nigeria fully subscribes to and fully endorses Goals 13, 14 and 15 of the SDGs regarding Climate Change. In Nigeria, desertification and land erosion and degradation leading to biodiversity loss are real threats to our environment and we shall propose under the auspices of the Lake Chad Basin Commission a regional approach to combat these environmental challenges. 25. We look forward to the UN Summit on climate change in Paris in December 2015. This summit should provide optimism to humanity on addressing the looming threat faced by many communities around the world.
Mr. President,
We are witnessing a dreadful increase in conflicts fuelled by availability of small arms and light weapons. I call upon all member countries to demonstrate the political will needed to uphold the UN charter. For a start, a robust implementation of the Arms Trade Treaty will guarantee that small arms and light weapons are only legally transferred. Arms traffickers and human traffickers are two evil species which the world community should eradicate.
Mr. President,
As we engage in these annual debates, we need remind ourselves of the principles that led to the founding of the United Nations. Among those are peaceful coexistence and self-determination of peoples. In this context, Mr. President, the unresolved question of self-determination for the Palestinian people and those of Western Sahara, both nations having been adjusted by the United Nations as qualifying for this inalienable right must now be assured and fulfilled without any further delay or obstacle. 28. The international community has come to pin its hopes on resolving the Palestinian issue through the two – states solution which recognises the legitimate right of each state to exist in peace and security. The world has no more excuses or reasons to delay the implementation of the long list of Security Council resolutions on this question. Neither do we have the moral right to deny any people their freedom or condemn them indefinitely to occupation and blockade
Mr. President, delegates of member countries, 29. UN is 70 years old. It can count many more than 70 major achievements as the world’s forum and family reunion. It is my hope that in the next 70 years, it will achieve control of climate, help to eliminate communicable diseases, eliminate major and local conflicts and therefore eliminate the problem of refugees, take major steps towards reducing harmful inequalities between nations and within nations and above all, eliminate nuclear weapons. 30. Mr. President, as this is my first address in this Assembly, I thank you and the delegates for listening so patiently. [myad]
Nigeria soldiers have gunned down a man described as a notorious Boko Haram commander who had been wrecking havoc among the communities around Kwatarha and Torikwaptir general area of Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State.
Information available to Greenbarge Reporters showed that four other terrorists escaped escaped with gun shot wounds during the confrontation with the soldiers even as an AK-47 rifle was recovered from them.
This was even as soldiers announced the arrest of a suspected Boko Haram kingpin, Alhaji Tijjani Usman Damagum. He was tracked down and arrested at Damagum town, Yobe State yesterday.
Damaguum was said to have led Boko Haram members on various attacks, especially in Yobe State. [myad]
Pan sociopolitical organization, Afenifere, has called on the Federal Government to abolish nomadic system of cattle rearing in Yorubaland in order to stop the criminality allegedly being perpetrated by Fulani herdsmen in the rural communities of Yorubaland.
This was contained in a communiqué today at the end of the monthly meeting of the organization at the residence of its leader, Pa Rueben Fasonranti, in Akure, the Ondo State capital.
In the communique read by the Publicity Secretary of the group, Mr. Yinka Odumakin, Afenifere decried the state of insecurity in the country, particularly, the recent kidnapping of a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Olu Falae, last week.
Describing the kidnap of Falae as shameful, insensitive and disrespect to the Yoruba race, the group warned that if the Federal Government failed to stop the herdsmen from attacking the Yoruba people, the people of the South-West might have to defend themselves.
“Our people are everywhere in the country and they don’t destroy the business of their hosts. Why should the Fulani people be destroying our own business? Our demand is that the Federal Government should arrest the perpetrators and prosecute them. Youruba people will not tolerate this any longer.
“So, while we await the arrest of the criminals, cattle rearing should be stopped in Yorubaland. I read Chief Olu Falae told the Commissioner of Police that government should do something urgently to stop this thing because if such a thing is not done, it will be encouraging self-help; people will defend themselves. And we agree totally with him.”
Afenifere asked the President to implement the recommendations of the report of the 2014 National Conference which it said contained the abolition of nomadic system of cattle rearing. It described cattle rearing as primitive, and asked the government should rather adopt ranching cattle rearing system.
“The meeting noted that in 2014 National Conference, to which Chief Olu Falae led the Yoruba delegation, extensively discussed this matter of nomadic cattle rearing and the Conference resolved that it should be stopped and instead have ranches for cattle business.” [myad]
Disgraced former FIFA Vice-President, Jack Warner has been banned for life by FIFA’s ethics committee, describing him as a “key player” in the illegal payments.
Warner, who is fighting extradition from Trinidad to the USA on corruption charges, resigned from FIFA in 2011 following a bribery scandal and has not been involved since then.
FIFA’s ethics committee opened an investigation into Warner earlier this year and has now banned him for life from football-related activities.
A statement from the ethics committee said: “Mr. Warner was found to have committed many and various acts of misconduct continuously and repeatedly during his time as an official in different high-ranking and influential positions at FIFA and CONCACAF.
“In his positions as a football official, he was a key player in schemes involving the offer, acceptance, and receipt of undisclosed and illegal payments, as well as other money-making schemes.” [myad]
The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has confirmed that 64 Nigerians were among those who died on Thursday in a stampede at Jamrat, in Saudi Arabia. It said that 10 more corpses of deceased Nigerian pilgrims have been identified and were added to the previous 54 that whose death were ealier announced.
Giving newsmen update on the incident in Mecca, Alhaji Uba Mana,
The Director of Public Affairs of the commission, Alhaji Uma Mana who spoke to news men in Mecca today said that 71 pilgrims were injured while 244 pilgrims are still missing.
He said that of the 64 deceased pilgrims, 46 were airlifted to Saudi Arabia by state pilgrims’ welfare agencies and 18 by private tour operators, adding that 12 of the 71 injured pilgrims were airlifted to the Holy land by tour operators and 59 by state pilgrims’ welfare agencies.
Uba Mana said that the deceased were from Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Ekiti, Jigawa, FCT, Cross River, Gombe, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kaduna, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Yobe, Taraba, and Zamfara States. [myad]
Health experts are worried that number of deaths due to cardiovascular diseases, commonly referred to as hypertension, has increased across the world by 41 percent between 1990 and 2013, climbing from 12.3 million deaths to 17.3 million deaths.
According to an analysis of data from 188 countries, over the same period, death rates within specific age groups however, dropped by 39 percent.
These revelations came today as the world marks World Health Day, with a theme this year as: “Healthy Heart Choices For Everyone, Everywhere.”
This is coming against the World Health Organization (WHO)’s target of reducing premature mortality from cardiovascular disease and other non communicable diseases (NCDs) by 25 per cent beore 2025.
Speaking on this year’s theme, an Associate Professor of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Dr. Amam Mbakwem said that hypertension is one subject every Nigerian should be aware of, adding that more blacks have hypertension than whites basically because the way blacks handle salt is a bit different.
Dr. Mbakwem said that people tended to hold onto more salt because of the climate even as she said that diet is another reason for the high rate of hypertensive cases in black people hence the need for Nigerians to make healthy heart choices.
According to her, Nigerians stood more risk of hypertension because of their lifestyles, saying that in some recent studies involving trans fats, researchers found trans fat consumption was associated with a 34 percent increase in all-cause mortality, a 21 percent increase in the risk of coronary heart disease and a 28 percent increase in the risk of death from coronary heart disease.
“It is not just the numbers whether it is 120 or 140 but the damage that it causes because with blood pressure high in the system, it is heating the brains and it can damage the brains and when that happens, we talk about stroke.”
She advised every adult to know his or her blood pressure numbers by maintaining a good habit of regular monitoring and medical checks with home blood pressure checks.
In the views of Chairman, Board of Trustees, Nigerian Heart Foundation (NHF), Emeritus Professor Akinkugbe, healthy nutrition is an important part of a healthy life, hence, the need for food manufacturers to provide education on heart-healthy foods.
“Food labelling across the world develops community awareness on healthy foods and provideopportunity for healthy food choices and the NHF Heart Check Food Labelling Programme is a systematic endorsement of food items certifying them healthy for consumption and heart friendly with emphasis on low fats and cholesterol, low sodium and low glucose.”
He asked Nigerians to begin to make on-the-spot healthy food choices. [myad]
“I am on trial today because I am the president of the Nigerian Senate, against the wishes of some powerful individuals outside this Chambers.”
These were the remarks of the embattled Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki when he addressed his colleagues in his opening speech, at the resumption from a long recess.
Senator Saraki, who obviously whipped up a lot of sentiment that later encouraged 83 Senators to pass a vote of confidence on him, went on: “but what is clear to me also, is that the laws of Nigeria, and the rules of the National Assembly give consideration only to the wishes and desires of those of you who are here today as members of the Senate, to elect as you wish, one of your peers as President of the Senate. This, in your wisdom, is what you have done by electing me to be the first among all of you who are my equals.
“The laws of Nigeria do not give any consideration to any other forces outside the Senate in the election of its President. And to yield the ground on this note, is to be complicit in the subversion of democracy and its core principles of separation of powers as enshrined in our constitution. This is why we must once again, commend President Muhammadu Buhari, for refusing to interfere in the election of the National Assembly leadership even in the face of enormous pressures on him to do so. He has proven quite concretely that he is indeed a born-again democrat.”
Senator Saraki reminded his colleagues that too many people have fought and died for the democracy that we enjoy today, adding that the Senators should honour the memories of such people by not allowing the sad chapters of our history to continue to repeat themselves like a bad curse.
“As for me, I am prepared to do my duty in defence of our democracy and in safeguarding the independence of the National Assembly. My duty, as I see it, is to do justice and honour to the memory of those who have paid even higher prices to give us this democracy and this constitution. Primarily as a Senator of the Federal Republic and as Senate President I owe it to this Senate to stand strong in the face of relentless persecution. I invite all of you to stand with me to defend this Senate and preserve its sanctity.”
He also reminded that their legacies would not be defined by how long they stayed in the Senate and in whatever position, but by what they did with this great opportunity that their people have given them by the grace of Almighty God.
Read the full text of his speech:
WELCOME ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA, DR. ABUBAKAR BUKOLA SARAKI (CON) TO SENATORS OF THE 8TH SENATE ON RESUMPTION FROM THE SENATE RECESS ON TUESDAY, 29TH SEPTEMBER, 2015.
Protocol:
Distinguished colleagues, I heartily welcome you back from our annual recess. I hope you had a very rewarding time with your families and your constituencies. I also hope that the period of recess has afforded you opportunities to reflect on the enormous task before this Senate in the months ahead.
I believe that we have all resumed today with greater vigour and higher commitment to serve our fatherland and serve the cause of democracy. In the face of the great challenges that our country faces on different fronts, which urgently demands our attention, we must be prepared to put in the long extra hours to make up for the precious time we have lost for sundry reasons. As we resume today, we must demonstrate clearly to Nigerians that we are prepared to fulfill our mandates and put Nigeria first in all that we do, no matter how we feel about anything else. To behave contrary will amount to a betrayal of the confidence repose on us by our constituencies and our country as a whole.
Let me seize this moment to register my deep sadness over the death of yet-to-be-determined number of pilgrims who lost their lives in the tragic events that happened in Saudi Arabia during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage. May the Almighty Allah grant them eternal salvation and comfort their families. Even though the incident in Mecca has global ramification, we must pursue a Nigerian angle to it.
By so doing, we would begin to demonstrate to Nigerians and to the world that Nigeria cares about its people and will take care of its people wherever they may be. Pursuant to this, the Senate shall seek to determine the exact number of Nigerian lives lost in the incidents and through the Federal Government of Nigeria, work with the Saudi authorities to determine the remote and immediate cause of the tragedy with the general aim of averting such occurrence in the future.
On the 17th of September, 2015, we woke to the shocking news of a military coup in Burkina Faso. This is a monster, which we thought has been wiped off the West African political landscape forever. I therefore, commend the prompt response of the leaders of ECOWAS, not only in unanimously condemning the coup, but in pushing hard to ensure that the constitutional order is restored in that country. A threat to democracy anywhere, is a threat to democracy everywhere. We must therefore remain vigilant and leave no one in doubt that only democratically elected government would be accepted on our Continent and our Sub-region.
During the recess, I attended with some of our colleagues, the Inter-Parliamentary Union Conference in New York, United States. The high point of that visit for me was the conversation on Boko Haram and mobilization of global support for Nigeria, especially in dealing with the serious challenges of Internally Displaced Persons and the overall development of the North East of our country. I argued that the significant military success that has been achieved under President Muhammadu Buhari must now be complemented by a robust economic strategy in form of a Global Infrastructure and Development Fund that can deliver the vital services needed by the IDPs today, and the key infrastructure they would need to live a more meaningful and more secured life in the future: homes, hospitals, schools and, of course, jobs.
Even though the evolution of Boko Haram has been regional and it is primarily a Nigerian problem; the consequences in human catastrophe implicates the whole of humanity and therefore demands a global scale solution, which can only happen with the support of our richest global partners and the biggest companies around the world. The call for a Global Infrastructure and Development Fund for the North East of Nigeria, is not only an appeal to our common humanity, but a call for a global platform that would demonstrate to Boko Haram and other terrorist groups everywhere that the whole world is united against them, and will ultimately defeat them.
The biggest challenge faced by our country today is the state of our economy. The dwindling oil revenue has brought enormous shock to our economy and greatly limited the capacity of government at various levels to meet even basic commitments. Our country has gone through periods of recession in the past. What we face today is however unprecedented in ramification and potential gravity.
We must think hard and work hard with the Executive to achieve greater clarity in policy direction and interventions. We shall therefore commence immediately, a review of the 2015 budget and begin now to lay down the fundamental principles that would determine the 2016 budget and the philosophy of our economy in times like this. Like I mentioned earlier, legislative agenda must take precedent over all other things in this Senate. I have no doubt that we are all capable of putting in the long hours, but those long hours must be invested primarily, in debating and making the laws that would move our country forward.
We are here to proffer policy solutions and minimize hardship amongst our people. Any other objective must be secondary. The externalized distractions we have had recently have been unhelpful but I am more than ever focused and resolute to the course of our people to provide them leadership that will ease their pain and realize their dreams. It is in view of this that we set for ourselves the legislative agenda committee to help us identify priorities that will have substantial impact on the lives of our people.
In the coming days we shall be considering the report of the committee. Adopt it and immediately begin the implementation of the priorities identified. There will be need to fast track issues- not with haste but with deliberate steps and diligence that would deliver results that can stand the test of time.
We promised Nigerians that our actions would positively impact on their lives. This I intend to keep. In that light I will urge you my distinguished colleagues that we make priority the passing of bills that would ultimately and substantially expand our peoples livelihood and opportunities.
As part of our agenda, we shall also be starting the journey to deliver the E-parliament blueprint. This we believe is a vital precursor to building a strong technology infrastructure that will engender greater public participation in law-making and enable real-time interface between committees in both houses, and between both houses and civil society organizations.
I took opportunity of the recess to undertake tour of the facilities, staff offices, agencies and institutions attached to the National assembly with a view to understanding their various peculiarities and state of readiness to implement and drive the adoption of the E-parliament agenda.
This will see us leapfrog into the ranks of efficient law-making entities able to solve 21st century problems. I believe that this will leapfrog our productivity and make lawmaking in this chamber much more efficient.
As we await the list of ministerial nominees this week, I believe the presence of ministers will create the space for greater policy engagement with the Executive Arm of government and enable us to begin to respond in a more systematic manner to the various economic and social challenges before us, especially through our various Committees that will also be constituted soon. On this note, I want to urge you all my colleagues to ensure that what is uppermost in our minds as we begin the constitutional task of screening of ministerial nominees is the overall interest of our country, informed by the enormity and the urgency of the challenges before us. Once the list is submitted, let us ensure that we treat it with dispatch. We must not be held down by unnecessary politicking. The enormity of our national challenges at this time does not give room for pettiness or politics of vendetta.
Distinguished Senators, I believe you have all followed with keen interest, my trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal. I shall avoid discussing the details of that case here for obvious reasons. But let me say it again, that I am ready and will submit myself to the entire judicial process as provided by law. Meanwhile, I wish to reiterate my remarks before the Tribunal, that I have no iota of doubt that I am on trial today because I am the president of the Nigerian Senate, against the wishes of some powerful individuals outside this Chambers.
But what is clear to me also, is that the laws of Nigeria, and the rules of the National Assembly give consideration only to the wishes and desires of those of you who are here today as members of the Senate, to elect as you wish, one of your peers as President of the Senate. This, in your wisdom, is what you have done by electing me to be the first among all of you who are my equals. The laws of Nigeria do not give any consideration to any other forces outside the Senate in the election of its President.
And to yield the ground on this note, is to be complicit in the subversion of democracy and its core principles of separation of powers as enshrined in our constitution. This is why we must once again, commend President Muhammadu Buhari, for refusing to interfere in the election of the National Assembly leadership even in the face of enormous pressures on him to do so. He has proven quite concretely that he is indeed a born-again democrat.
Too many people have fought and died for the democracy that we enjoy today. We would not be honouring them and their memories if we allow the sad chapters of our history to continue to repeat themselves like a bad curse. As for me, I am prepared to do my duty in defence of our democracy and in safeguarding the independence of the National Assembly.
My duty, as I see it, is to do justice and honour to the memory of those who have paid even higher prices to give us this democracy and this constitution. Primarily as a Senator of the Federal Republic and as Senate President I owe it to this Senate to stand strong in the face of relentless persecution. I invite all of you to stand with me to defend this Senate and preserve its sanctity. Ultimately, our legacies would not be defined by how long we stay here and in whatever position; but by what we did with this great opportunity that our people have given us by the grace of Almighty God.
In the next couple of days, we would be celebrating our 55th Independence Anniversary as country. This is an auspicious moment for us to rededicate ourselves to all that which will advance our nation, move us closer to the dreams of our founding fathers and our attain our destiny as the greatest nation of the black race on the planet. All that we seek for our country is achievable in our life time if we all play our part and forsake our old ways. But the least we must do is to ensure that while we are here, we are able to lay the necessary foundation for our children and their children to live a more prosperous life.
Distinguished Senators, once again, I welcome all of you and thank you for your abiding support and confidence in my leadership. Ladies and Gentlemen, Let’s start our work!
Senator (Dr.) Abubakar Bukola Saraki, CON PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE. [myad]
Russian President, Vladimir Putin on Monday admonished those who supported democratic revolutions in the Middle East, saying that democracy has led to the rise of a globally ambitious Islamic State.
“Instead of the triumph of democracy and progress, we got violence, poverty and social disaster — and nobody cares a bit about human rights, including the right to life.”
Putin who spoke through a translator at the United Nations General Assembly today said: “I cannot help asking those who have forced that situation: Do you realize what you have done?”
The Russian President added that the power vacuum following these revolutions led to the rise of terrorist groups in the region — including the Islamic State group.
He told the General Assembly that it would be an “enormous mistake” not to cooperate with the Syrian government to combat the extremist group.
“No one but President (Bashar) Assad’s armed forces and Kurdish militia are truly fighting the Islamic State and other terrorist organizations in Syria,” he said.
In an earlier speech at the U.N, President Barack Obama said it would be a mistake to think that Syria could be stable under Assad.
Acknowledging some of the criticism lobbed at Russia’s proposal, Putin said his country is only proposing to help save the world from terrorism.
“I must note that such an honest and frank approach from Russia has been recently used as a pretext to accuse it of its growing ambitions — as if those who say it has no ambitions at all. However, it’s not about Russia’s ambitions, dear colleagues, but about the recognition of the fact that we can no longer tolerate the current state of affairs in the world,” he said.
He proposed a “generally broad international coalition against terrorism,” likening the suggestion to the anti-Hitler coalition that brought together disparate interests to battle fascism in Europe.
Putin warned that international policy toward the region has led to an Islamic State with plans that “go further” than simply dominating the Middle East. And citing recent data about failures in successfully recruiting “moderate” Syrian opposition, Putin said countries opposed to Assad are simply worsening the situation.
“We believe that any attempts to play games with terrorists, let alone to arm them, are not just short-sighted, but hazardous. This may result in the global terrorist threat increasing dramatically and engulfing new regions,” the Russian leader said.
On the subject of the ongoing civil war in Ukraine, Putin warned that NATO expansion could lead to other similar crises. He called for all sides in the conflict — which he said was sparked by a “military coup” orchestrated “by the outside” — to respect the Minsk agreements, or else risk more violence. [myad]
Former spokesperson to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Dr. Reuben Abati has charged journalists to hold political office holders accountable to the people of Nigeria even as he asked them to always make sure that such leaders implement viable economic policies for national development.
Dr. Abati, who was a guest lecturer at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Correspondents’ Chapel 2015 Press Week at Iwe-Iroyin, Oke-Ilewo, Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, said that most economic policies of the previous governments failed due to lack of dedication and sustenance on the part of public office holders.NUJ
He spoke on the topic, “Media and Economic Renaissance: Media as a tool for economic diversification”.
The former presidential spokesperson asked journalists to always, through their reports, make public office holders to be accountable to the people since they are holding office in trust for the people.
Abati said that the lack of continuity of viable economic policies has not helped Nigeria, and that the nation began to decline economically when it hinged its fiscal budget on oil market price, at the expense of agriculture. [myad]
Youths from the four Akure-speaking local government areas of Ondo State, today, trooped to major roads in the state capital to protest the activities of herdsmen, who they accused of terrorizing people of Akureland and the state on their farmlands.
The youths under the aegis of Akure Youth Coalition (AYC), also protested the recent abduction of the former Secretary to the Government (SGF), Chief Olu Falae by suspected Fulani herdsmen.
The protesting youths from Akure South, Akure North, Ifedore and Idanre Local Government areas, carried placards of various inscription.
The youths, who converged on the town hall in the heart of the town and marched to the Deji’s palace and Ondo State House of Assembly with placards, which protested their grievances. [myad]
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How I Intend To Fight Inequality In Nigeria, Buhari’s Full Address At The 70th Session Of The UN General Assembly
“We intend to tackle inequalities arising from massive unemployment and previous government policies favouring a few people to the detriment of the many. We intend to emphasize quality technological education for development and lay foundation for comprehensive care of the aged, the disadvantaged and the infirm. But for now terrorism is the immediate problem.
Read President Muhammadu Buhari full address:
President of the General Assembly,
Secretary–General
Your Excellencies Heads of State and Governments
Distinguished Delegates
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I would like, Mr. President, on behalf of the Government and people of Nigeria, to congratulate you and your country on your election to preside over the 70th session of the U.N. General Assembly.
Mr. President,
Mr. President,
As a prerequisite to these and as we look at history and remember the terrible events that gave rise to the birth of the United Nations in 1945, I would like to propose a seventh:
are all major challenges of the 21st century which the international community must tackle collectively. Let me reaffirm Nigerian government’s unwavering commitment to fight corruption and illicit financial flows. By any consideration, corruption and cross border financial crimes are impediments to development, economic growth, and the realization of the wellbeing of citizens across the globe.
Mr. President,
25. We look forward to the UN Summit on climate change in Paris in December 2015. This summit should provide optimism to humanity on addressing the looming threat faced by many communities around the world.
Mr. President,
Mr. President,
28. The international community has come to pin its hopes on resolving the Palestinian issue through the two – states solution which recognises the legitimate right of each state to exist in peace and security. The world has no more excuses or reasons to delay the implementation of the long list of Security Council resolutions on this question. Neither do we have the moral right to deny any people their freedom or condemn them indefinitely to occupation and blockade
Mr. President, delegates of member countries,
29. UN is 70 years old. It can count many more than 70 major achievements as the world’s forum and family reunion. It is my hope that in the next 70 years, it will achieve control of climate, help to eliminate communicable diseases, eliminate major and local conflicts and therefore eliminate the problem of refugees, take major steps towards reducing harmful inequalities between nations and within nations and above all, eliminate nuclear weapons.
30. Mr. President, as this is my first address in this Assembly, I thank you and the delegates for listening so patiently. [myad]