President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday during a press conference with the visiting German President, Joachim Gauck, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja calls for more Germany support in the fight against the terrorist sect, Boko Haram and corruption.
President Gauck expressed his country’s support for the present administration’s wars against terrorism and corruption. The visiting President, who spoke through an interpreter, also said he had earlier visited a camp of Internally Displaced Persons in Abuja and was moved by their plight.
He promised that his country would offer support to the Federal Government where necessary in order to ameliorate the plights of the IDPs. He extended an invitation to Buhari to pay official visit to Germany. He said: “You (Buhari) personally have made it clear that it is in a determined way that you intend to fight the Boko Haram and its methods that deeply violate the principles of humanity.
“We intend to support you because we believe that it is a very good approach that you have chosen and that is something we would make available financial support and and this that approach consists joining forces with neighbouring countries to fight Boko Haram together. “You have already taken steps in that direction as members of the African Union. We as Europe will support that initiative with $50 million.”
Buhari on his part used the opportunity of the interaction to seek Germany’s support for Nigeria’s quest to hold a permanent seat in the United Nations. “Outside bilateral, in the United Nations, Nigeria and African country feel that we are qualified by our number, by our size by and our position in Africa to have a seat in the United Nations. We hope that Germany will support us,” he said.
Buhari again said his administration has stopped the Boko Sect from continuing with its attacks on installations and towns as it used to do. The President said it has become clear that some officials of the past government sat and shared the money meant for military hardware, therefore forcing soldiers into mutiny.
The President said: “It is a pity Boko Haram welcomed you with explosions in Maiduguri that took so many lives, but I have attempted to explain in so many fora that Boko Haram is not what it used to be. “While they were firmly holding 14 out of 774 local governments when we came in, they are not holding any local government now. “What they have resorted to is using improvised explosive devices to cause maximum casualties on soft targets as they did yesterday (on Wednesday).
“But for them to organize conventional attacks on military, police installations and take hold of towns, I think they are not able to do that. They send groups to go and kill vulnerable targets.” Buhari however admitted that the Federal Government must double its efforts aimed at ensuring that displaced persons, especially children, are rehabilitated.
He regretted that children and orphans constitute over 60 per cent of the two million IDPs.
