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No 3rd Term for Me, First Person Who Tried It Didn’t End Well- Buhari told Johnson
President Muhammadu Buhari, on Thursday, reassured Nigerians and the world that he would not stay in office a day longer than May 29, 2023, when his second and final term as president will end. Buhari spoke in Kigali, Rwanda, during the 26th edition of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), a biennial gathering of Commonwealth countries hosted by different member countries on a rotating basis.
The Nigerian president told British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, on the sidelines of the conference, that the first person, who tried to extend his tenure – an apparent reference to former President Olusegun Obasanjo – did not end well.
Buhari welcomed the British government’s security assistance to Nigeria, but said a good way to start was for the United Kingdom to first stabilise Libya.
The fall of the Libyan leader, Muammar Gadaffi, in 2011, after 42 years in power, in an uprising that threw the country into a protracted civil war, has been blamed for the crisis in the Sahel, which has had terrible implications for Nigeria’s security.
Buhari justified the continued detention of the leader of the proscribed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu. He said Kanu had jumped bail in the past, which made his bail this time difficult.
The president visited the Kigali Genocide Memorial in Rwanda, toured the permanent exhibitions at the Memorial, and laid a wreath at the mass graves, where more than 250,000 victims of the genocide were buried.
He made a passionate appeal to Nigerians to be tolerant of one another and embrace peace.
Buhari, who also met with the Jamaican Prime Minister, Andrew Holness, in Kigali, extolled the cordial political and economic relations between Nigeria and Jamaica.
A release by Buhari’s media adviser, Femi Adesina, said at the meeting with Johnson, the Nigerian president reiterated his resolve to respect the maximum term limit in the Nigerian constitution.
Johnson had asked if Buhari would run for office again, perhaps, unfamiliar with the country’s democratic system, but the Nigerian leader immediately retorted, “Another term for me? No! The first person who tried it didn’t end very well.”
Obasanjo had towards the end of his second term in 2007 attempted to seek a third term in office but met stiff resistance at the National Assembly. The federal legislature threw away the clause that sought to give a sitting president the right to seek a third term. But the former president has always denied having anything to do with the idea.
Addressing speculations that Kanu was not being allowed to see his lawyers privately, the president dispelled such insinuations, saying the detained separatist is being given every opportunity under the law “to justify all the uncomplimentary things he had been saying against Nigeria in Britain.
“He felt very safe in Britain, and said awful things against Nigeria. We eventually got him, when he stepped out of the United Kingdom, and we sent him to court. Let him defend all that he has said there. His lawyers have access to him. Remember he jumped bail before, how are we sure he won’t do it again, if he’s admitted to bail?”
On the British prime minister’s keenness to help Nigeria in the area of security, Buhari said helping to stabilise Libya would be a pragmatic and strategic first step to the deployment of such assistance.
The fall of Ghaddafi, with the active involvement of Britain, the United States, and France, unleashed armed groups on countries of the Sahel. “And they are causing havoc everywhere, as the only thing they know how to do is to shoot guns,” Buhari told Johnson.
Giving an update on Boko Haram insurgency, Buhari said there was a serious effort to educate the people on the fact that only an unserious person could kill innocent people, “and say Allah Akbar (God is Great).
“God is justice. You can’t take innocent souls, and ascribe it to God. And the education process is working, the people now understand Boko Haram as anti-God, and not about religion.”
On his part, Johnson said he was delighted to hear the good news on trade between Britain and Nigeria. He said the UK was further reducing tariffs on some goods going to Nigeria.
The prime minister described the relationship between Nigeria and the UK as “very strong attachment,” adding, “I just want to be sure that we are doing enough. It’s a massive partnership for us, and we need to capitalise on it.”
He offered condolences on some recent attacks in Nigeria, particularly, on churches.
Buhari paid tribute to the memory of the victims of the Rwanda genocide and prayed for healing for the survivors. He told newsmen that the lessons from his visit were the need for Nigerians to continue to be tolerant of one another, and for the country to also preserve its own historical antecedents from the Nigeria Civil War (1967-1970).
According to Buhari, “I went through all the experiences from 15 January 1966 to date. I was a governor, minister, and Head of State and went through detention. I returned to partisan politics and will finish my two terms as constitutionally allowed. We fought a 30-month bitter civil war and we killed about a million of each other. Nigeria went through this kind of terrible development process.”
Before departing the Memorial, Buhari wrote in the visitor’s book, “Remembering the victims of this dark history of the Rwanda Genocide, we pray that humanity will never experience this kind of hatred, wickedness and violence toward others, because of their ethnic background, religion, and beliefs.
“Nigeria is strongly committed to the prevention of mass atrocity anywhere in the world and believes that perpetrators of such crimes; and their enablers, anywhere in the world must be held accountable.”
At his meeting with the Jamaican Prime Minister, Holness, Buhari said, “Our relationship dates back in time, to generations ago. Thank you for strengthening it, particularly, on the economic and political fronts.”
Holness noted that Nigeria had been very supportive of Jamaica, with the two countries having commercial agreements in place.
He said, “The maiden flight from Lagos to Jamaica about two years ago was well received. We equally have relationships in the creative industry, sports and finance.”
Making reference to a recent opinion article written by Buhari, which was published in international newspapers, Holness said he agreed that the Commonwealth could be more than just a club of friends, who have affinity with the United Kingdom, “and become an economic powerhouse. All the elements are there: common language, large market, and many others. It can become a serious economic force.”
An elderstatesman and legal icon, Chief Afe Babalola, has bagged the 2024 Best Nigerian Patriot Award for his outstanding performance in humanitarian activities, provision of quality education as well as promotion of peace.
The award was given at an induction ceremony and technical workshop for the inauguration and certification of UN Ambassadors for Peace on Thursday in Abuja.
The event with the theme, “Effective Approach to Anger Management and Tolerance as Panacea for Global Peace and Sustainable Development,” was organised by the Association of UN Ambassadors for Peace (ASUNAP).
The award was organised in collaboration with The Mighty One Empowerment Foundation (TEMOEFA) to support the United Nations efforts in promoting global peace and ethnic tolerance.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that no fewer than 10 persons were also inducted and certified as UN Ambassadors for Peace.
A former Minister of Education, Prof. Tunde Adeniran, who received the award on behalf of Babalola, said the association had done considerable research to come up with the nomination.
“It is one thing for individuals to be playing some roles, but it’s another thing for these roles to be recognised and to be appreciated by the society.
“As a scholar and a researcher, I know that when you do a thorough research into what individuals have contributed in this particular area, one would see that it would be difficult to find someone who has contributed more than Are Afe Babalola.
“This is quite evident from his forays into different areas of national life and continental life of Africa,” he said.
Adeniran called on Nigerians to key into the humanitarian gestures carried out by Babalola.
According to him, if more Nigerians embrace peace and conflict resolution, a lot would be achieved for the country and for humanity.
“This is because there is nothing as precious as peace; without peace, you will not have a stable polity.
“Without peace, there will be no development and love among the people.
“You will not be able to advance to the level where you can say you have reached the optimum.
“The ultimate goal of society is to actualise the potential of citizens, and to be able to get the very best for people.
“I will certainly encourage and plead with Nigerians to key into this, to do their very best, starting from the local, family, community and societal level,” he said.
Also speaking, the Global Director of Interfaith for ASUNAP, Emmanuel Emeka, said the event was aimed at recognising Nigerians in order to promote peace in the society.
Emeka said the association had holistically and comprehensively taken the data of Babalola’s performance, his impact in Nigeria and beyond and found him worthy of the award.
He said that voting was conducted across the nooks and crannies of the country, adding that his name came up with the highest number of votes among nominations.
He said the newly inducted ambassadors would be involved in conflict resolution and peacemaking.
In a keynote address, the Guest Speaker, Prof. Casmiar Obialom, charged the ambassadors not to give war a chance.
He noted that the cumulative effect of not implementing a Mrshall Plan of Action to abate the incidence of impunity had been the root cause of conflicts in society.
Among Nigerians inducted into the association were retired Brig.-Gen. Nuhu Milah, retired Commandant Anthony Nwegbo, Prof. Abiodun Ajibade, Maxwell Abubu, Mrs Comfort Arinze and Dr Raphael Gajere.
Gov. Babagana Zulum of Borno State has inaugurated three boards in the health sector and ordered a comprehensive overhaul of the state’s healthcare system to address pressing challenges.
The boards inaugurated on Thursday at the Council Chamber of the Government House, Maiduguri, include the Borno State Hospital Management Board, the Borno State Primary Healthcare Development Board and the Kashim Ibrahim University Teaching Hospital Management Board.
Speaking during the ceremony, Zulum said that reforms are necessary to strengthen the delivery of healthcare services, particularly at the primary level.
He added that “we are currently witnessing pressure on our secondary health facilities because primary healthcare is weak.
I want you to assess all hospitals individually and identify challenges related to staffing, equipment and medical supplies so that we can address the issues holistically.”
The governor also directed the boards to work toward resolving the problem of inadequate facilities, staffing and essential medical supplies.
Zulum also inaugurated the Borno State Local Government Service Commission Board, which comprises a chairman and four permanent commissioners.
He emphasised that the reforms and inaugurated boards are part of his administration’s commitment to providing accessible and efficient healthcare to the people.
Prof. Ahmed Ahidjo, the Chairman of the Kashim Ibrahim Teaching Hospital Management Board and Alhaji Modu Alhaji Musa, the Chairman, Local Government Service Commission, expressed gratitude for the honour given to them to serve and pledged to justify the confidence reposed in them.
The Kaduna State Water Services Regulatory Commission (KADWREC) says it is partnering media practitioners towards revamping water services in the state.
Mr Dogara Bashir, the Executive Chairman of KADWREC, disclosed this on Monday at a one-day workshop organised for media practitioners on regulation of ‘Water, Sanitation and Hygiene’ (WASH) activities held in Kaduna.
Bashir said the commission was aware of the importance of the role media practitioners played in the society.
He stated that the workshop was to provide an avenue to liaise with them as important stakeholders on water supply and sanitation services in the state.
Bashir said: “As media practitioners, we believe you are a gateway to the citizens so, the workshop would acquaint you with some of the regulations already in place so that you can in turn transmit it to the public
“The state of water services in Kaduna State is in dire need of attention and the State Water Corporation and KADWREC were established towards addressing the seeming challenges.
“The commission is mandated to ensure better service delivery and regulation of water and sanitation services in the State.
“The idea is that once the regulations are developed, we send them to the State Ministry of Justice to gazette and then we get the state government to endorse and give the go ahead to commence the implementation of the regulations
“We intend to implement them fully come January, 2025 God willing, as we have embarked on advocacy activities having gone to zones 1 and 2 where we talked to traditional rulers, security agencies and the Judiciary.”
He disclosed that a special Court has already been attached to the commission by the Chief Judge of the State for service providers who may likely violate regulations.
The chairman further said that amongst the commission’s objectives include ensuring security, reliability and quality of service in the production and delivery of water to the consumers as well making regulations to control the sinking of boreholes.
Others included; maximising access to water services by promoting and facilitating consumer connections to distribution systems in urban and rural areas.
According to Bashir, they also include ensuring that regulatory decision-making has regards to all the relevant health, safety, environmental and social legislation applying to the water sector.
Bashir further said that the commission collaborate with the relevant state and federal agencies on water policies.
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