It was nothing short of a melodrama at the Presidential Villa, Abuja,
yesterday, between State House correspondents and the Federal Government
over the many foreign trips of President Muhammadu Buhari during a
press briefing.
Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information, who justified the trips, said
they were necessary to bring the country back on the track of
development and growth.
According to him, Nigeria was a pariah state under former President Goodluck Jonathan.
He said that under Jonathan’s watch, corruption permeated the country,
such that foreign investors deserted it. He stated that it was necessary
to tell Nigerians that the trips had started paying off since
investors’ confidence in the country had been restored. Mohammed spoke
during a press briefing at the end of the Federal Executive Council,
FEC, meeting in Abuja.
He said: “You do not run a country by being isolated. The personal
presence of Mr. President in many of these fora is important because
before now, we were almost a pariah state. And the issues that have been
driving investments away from this country are terrorism and
corruption.
“One thing that nobody can fault this President for is his
determination and strength of purpose in resolving these matters. “Mr.
President’s presence in many of these fora is highly crucial even in
fixing our economy back at home.
” Mohammed’s counterpart in Environment, Amina Mohammed, corroborated
the position, saying the President needed not to run the country by
staying at home, especially when he had a deputy and a cabinet of
ministers to look after home affairs.
Journalists had waited patiently to be briefed on the outcome of the
Federal Executive Meeting, FEC, which routinely meets to take decision
on matters of government.
As usual, yesterday’s meeting was chaired by president Buhari with his
vice, professor Yemi Osinabjo and most of the 36 ministers in
attendance. By a little after midday, the meeting had ended with the
Minister of Information, Mr. Lai Mohammed, his counterpart in
Environment, Amina Mohammed in company with Minister of State for
Environment, Usman Ibrahim come into the press gallery inside the villa
to brief Journalists.
The briefing was reduced to a two item issue: Climate change and
President’s many foreign trips so far, anchored by the Minister of
Environment. Done with the briefing, journalists felt that there were
more pressing issues at the moment such as the fall of Naira and 2016
budget, amongst others which an important body as FEC should have dwelt
on other than reviewing or deliberating on climate change.
Apparently surprised by the insistence and probing question, Information
Minister Mohammed, said he was embarrassed and shocked, noting that
Nigerians needed to know the benefits of the presidential trips. Also,
speaking on the presidential foreign trips, the environment minister
stated that a review of the trips vi-sa-via the benefits was made by the
council.
“The Honorable Minister for Foreign Affairs gave a brief of four foreign
trips that the President has made towards the end of last year. So, we
are starting with the trip that happened between 22 and 23 of November
last year in Tehran and this was to do with Third Gas Exporting
Countries Forum.
“This, of course, as you would expect is very important to us in that we
intend to have common interest supported by member countries in terms
of making sure that our policies are more coordinated and coherent.
‘’The strategies at the international level can bring in the investments
we require for all of us. Also to promote national gas consumption as
the cleanest fossil fuel,” she said.
Meanwhile, Vanguard learned that President Buhari is due for more
foreign trips on Friday and early next week. He is likely to leave Abuja
on Friday for Egypt, return on Saturday and leave for Saudi Arabia and
Qatar early next week.
Vanguard
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