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| President Muhammadu Buhari |
President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered the release of US$21 million out
of the US$100 million pledged by Nigeria to the Multi National Joint Task Force
against Boko Haram.
Buhari announced this while chairing
the African Union (AU), Peace and Security Council (PSC) meeting at the
on-going AU summit in Johannesburg, South Africa.
He said the order, which was in
response to a decision by the leaders of the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC)
and Benin in Abuja to immediately fund the MNJTF with not less than US$30
million, will be carried out this week.
“The member countries of Lake Chad
Basin Commission and Benin, met recently where far reaching decisions were
taken to immediately put into operations the Multinational Joint Task Force.
“To
this end, the summit approved the immediate provision of US$30 million for the
Multinational Joint Task Force.
“Consequently
out of the pledge of US$100 million which Nigeria made to the Multinational Joint
Task Force, I have directed that US$21 million be released within the next one
week,’’ Buhari told the AU.
He
said he was pleased to note that Cameroon, Chad and Niger “are demonstrating of
this support.
“They
are fighting alongside Nigeria under the umbrella of Multinational Joint Task
Force to defeat Boko Haram.’’
Buhari
observed that the continent was inundated with crises of various forms which
required urgent attention.
“We
are witnesses to the rampant destruction of homes, roads, communications lines,
vital infrastructure and displacement of persons not to mention terrible loss
of lives.
“This
is true I must add of the North-East of Nigeria where we are dealing with the
scourge of Boko Haram.
“The
Boko Haram insurgency has extended its reach to Nigeria’s neighbours but is not
necessarily limited to these immediate countries as terrorism is a global
phenomenon with linkages across the globe.
“Given
this dimension of global terror it requires us to act accordingly in
brotherhood and partnership to fight our common goals against agents of evil,’’
he said.
The
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that at the LCBC meeting of Nigeria, Chad,
Camerron and Niger with Republic of Benin, Buhari had asked the leaders to
articulate their needs for onward delivery to the G7 group of industrialized
nations.
The
request was based on the promise by the G7 to support Nigeria in the fight
against terrorism when Buhari honoured the group’s invitation to attend its
last Summit in Germany.
The
President urged African leaders to place the interests of their countries above
narrow personal interests.
The
President noted that as the meeting of PSC focused on the situations of South
Sudan and Burundi, it required the leaders to put the situations in both
countries in proper context.
“The
people of these countries are suffering while their political leaders are
bickering among themselves.
“I
believe that is incumbent upon us as leaders to always place the interest of
our countries above narrow and personal interests.
“It
is therefore my expectation that at the end of this summit, the PSC will come
out with a united message to call on all parties to act in the interest of
their people and the entire continent,’’ Buhari charged.
The President added that the leaders must make deliberate efforts to “save
the face of Africa, we must give hope to the hopeless.
“The
time to do so is now as we look forward on the march toward 2063 to deliver a
continent that is at peace with itself, prosperous, a global partner and a
democratic show case’’.
Buhari
noted that the continent was inundated with conflicts of diverse forms
including the crises in Burkina Faso, Mali, Libya, Central Africa Republic,
South Sudan, and more recently in Burundi.
“As
you are aware in 2013 during our 50th anniversary celebration of our union, we
as African leaders committed ourselves to the objective of silencing the local
guns in Africa by 2020.
“With just five years
remaining, the prospect of realizing this objective looks doubtful,’’ Buhari
noted.
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