President Muhammadu Buhari says
it is better he keeps quiet on President Donald Trump’s alleged insult on some
African nations, including Nigeria, because he could not verify the validity of
the allegation.
According to a New York Times
report in December 2017, Trump was alleged to have said Nigerians “never return
to their huts” after seeing America.
The White House has, however,
denied the statement.
Asked during a question and
answer session with journalists after a joint press briefing with Trump, Buhari
said he exercises caution with press statements about other people.
“I’m very careful with what the
press says about [people] other than myself,” Buhari said.
“I’m not sure about the validity
or whether that allegation against the president was true or not, the best
thing for me is to keep quiet.”
Trump, in his own session with
journalists, also said they did not discuss the issue.
“We didn’t discuss it. You do
have some countries that are in very bad shape. We didn’t discuss it because
the president knows me and knows where I’m coming from,” Trump said.
Trump further gave assurance of
the speedy release of the $496 million worth of Tucano aircraft sold to Nigeria
by the US.
Meanwhile, Buhari has assured the
US that his administration remains committed to the principles of human rights
as well as the promotion and protection of people’s freedom, even in the
process of fighting terror.
A US report had said while the
government took steps to investigate alleged human abuses, “impunity remained
widespread at all levels of government.”
Buhari also thanked the US for
its humanitarian assistance in the insurgency-torn north-east region.
“We commit to ensure that all
documented cases of human rights abuses are investigated and those responsible
for violations held accountable for their actions,” Buhari said.
“The USA has been to date the
biggest contributor to the humanitarian response and last year gave
approximately 500 million US Dollars in cash and in-kind contributions through
the United Nations and other inter-governmental organizations.
“These have mainly supported
protection activities, health, food assistance and shelter.
Buhari added that his government
was doing all it could to secure the release of Leah Sharibu, the Dapchi
schoolgirll still in Boko Haram custody.
“In this context, we will
continue to welcome US collaboration in intelligence gathering, hostage
negotiations and information-sharing,” he said.
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