Nigerian leader Buhari, Obama meet to shore up relations

President Muhammadu Buhari and United States President, Barack Obama at the Oval office of the White House during Buhari’s visit to Washington DC on Monday. Nigerian officials had turned down some of the assistance the United States offered to combat Boko Haram under former president Goodluck Jonathan.

“We’ve made clear there are additional things that can be done especially now that there is a new military leadership in place”, a senior US official said. And it was an affirmation of Nigeria’s commitment to democracy, a recognition that although Nigeria is a big country and a diverse country with many different parts, nevertheless the people of Nigeria understand that only through a peaceful political process can change take place.

Security will top the agenda when Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari meets with President Barack Obama in Washington on Monday as the newly elected president struggles against worsening violence from the terror group Boko Haram.

“He has a very clear agenda in terms of rooting out the corruption that too often has held back the economic growth and prosperity of his country”.

Buhari adviser Femi Adesina said in a statement that during a discussion on terrorism, the vice president counseled that victory can not come from military options alone. Similarly, we look to U.S. businesses as well as the Obama administration to help develop governance initiatives that can ensure that Nigeria’s wealth benefits all its people, not just a few.

Managing editor Aliyu Mustapha of VOA’s Hausa Service, said Buhari’s visit establishes a fresh start for both countries.

“President (Obama) has long seen Nigeria as arguably the most important strategic country in sub-Saharan Africa”, US Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken told Reuters. Abdullahi Muhammad Sufi, director of research and the Interfaith Mediation Center in Kaduna, northwest Nigeria, expressed discontent while speaking to VICE News.

The President also said that his decision to keep the appointments till September is similar to the decision taken by President Obama when he assumed office. “These initiatives would be tremendously important in bringing renewed attention to repatriation of stolen assets to Nigeria”.

Fighters with Boko Haram – which in March purportedly pledged allegiance with the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS), also known as ISIS – remain scattered across the Sambisa forest and surrounding villages, and Nigeria now is now facing a full-blown insurgency. Almost one million people have been displaced.

He said, “In recent weeks, it appears to have shifted away from confronting the military directly to an increase in attacks on civilian areas, as we saw only last week when an elderly woman and 10-year-old girl blew themselves up at a Muslim prayer gathering in northeastern Nigeria”.

Buhari’s delegation comprised the governors of Imo, Nasarawa, Edo, Borno and Oyo States as well as the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and Permanent Secretaries of the Federal Ministries of Defence, Foreign Affairs, Industry, Trade and Investment.