Buhari departs New York for London
After days of marathon meetings and address at the 72nd United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the President, Muhammadu Buhari Thursday left New York for London.
Buhari left New York for the Abuja House in London where he will be involved in some diplomatic meetings as well as attend to his medical needs.
As part of the UNGA activities, Buhari was hosted to a lunch with some African leaders by the United States President, Donald Trump.
The President also held meetings with the United Nations Secretary General, Antonio Gueterres and King Abdullah II of Jordan.
In his address to the world leaders, Buhari pledged Nigeria’s solidarity to the United Nations and solicited the support of the international community in tackling global challenges.
The President reiterated the commitment of the country to democratic ethos, just as he called for more commitment from the United Nations to check the infiltration of fleeing ISIS fighters into the Lake Chad Basin and the Sahel.
He also urged UN to set up a technical committee that will go into dialogue with North Korea following series to nuclear test conducted by the Asian country which has continued unabated.
He stressed the need for world leaders to close the widening gap between developing and nations to stern the increasing wave of inequality and agitations in the world, calling for greater focus on gender equality, youth empowerment, social inclusion, the promotion of education, creativity, and innovation, creation of a platform that will incubate free and fair elections, and enthronement of the rule of law.
“Our faith in democracy remains firm and unshaken. Our regional organisation ECOWAS came together to uphold democratic principles in The Gambia – as we had done previously in Cote D’Ivoire.
“Through our individual national efforts, state institutions are being strengthened to promote accountability, and to combat corruption and asset recovery. These can only be achieved through the international community cooperating and providing critical assistance and material support. We shall also cooperate in addressing the growing transnational crimes such as forced labour, modern-day slavery, human trafficking, and cybercrime.”
At one of the events, King Abdullah II of Jordan New York donated 200 armoured fighting vehicles and other military hardware to Nigeria with additional pledge to further supply helicopters to the country to enhance its fight against terrorism.
