JOHN KERRY ARRIVES NIGERIA, PROMISES TO HELP COMBAT TERRORISM

President Buhari has pledged that the anti-
corruption crusade being led by his
administration will be fair, just and will be
according to the rule of law. He said this during
his meeting with the US Secretary of State,
John Kerry, at the State House, Abuja yesterday
August 23rd. According to President Buhari,
anyone perceived corrupt will be treated
innocently until proven otherwise.
"We will insist on the standards we're
establishing. We are laying down
administrative and financial instructions
in the public service that must be
obeyed. Any breach will no longer be
acceptable. We will retrain our staff, so
that they understand the new
orientation. And those who run foul of
these rules will be prosecuted, no matter
who is involved. But we will be fair, just
and act according to the rule of law.
Anyone perceived corrupt is innocent till
we can prove it. We will work very hard
to establish documentation for
successful prosecution, and those in
positions of trust will sit up," he said
President Buhari appreciated the intervention of
the U.S before the 2015 polls, demanding free
and fair elections in Nigeria, saying, "America
did not do it because of what it stands to
benefit from us. You did it for the Nigerian
people. It tells so much what the U.S stands
for in the world."
On the Boko Haram insurgency, President
Buhari thanked the U.S for both hard and soft
military help. "The training and intelligence that
we could not muster ourselves, we received.
The training has made Boko Haram less of a
threat to Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin
region, while the military hardware has given
our troops added confidence."
President Buhari said though Militancy in the
Niger Delta has impacted negatively on the
economy and affected the positive intentions of
international and local investors, government
was showing restraint not to use real force,
"except when constrained to do so."
On the economy, the President assured that the
focus of his administration is on the
diversification of the economy having learnt our
lessons from years of over dependence on oil.
In his remarks, Kerry commended the courage
of President Buhari in fighting corruption. He
said President Buhari inherited abig problem
when he assumed office in 2015.
"We applaud what you are doing.
Corruption creates a ready-made playing
field for recruiting extremists. You
inherited a big problem, and we will
support you in any way we can. We will
work with you very closely. We don't
want to interfere, but will offer
opportunities as you require." he said
The American Secretary of State also pledged
to assist in tackling the humanitarian
challenges in the North-east, adding that his
country would get the UK, France, and others
"to augment the support."
"Nigeria is priority for us. We won't miss the
opportunity to work together, because you are
making significant progress," Kerry said.


Source:LIB
Edited by DANIEL IKECHUKWU EKWUNIFE for odogwublog.com