FG, Atiku, react to U.S. visa ban
The Federal Government has responded to the United States suspension of the issuance of immigrant visas to Nigerians. In a Press release signed by Special Adviser to the President, Femi Adesina, said that while President Buhari has set up a committee to evaluate the situation, Nigeria remains committed to sustaining a good relationship with the U.S.
Part of the statement says: “Accordingly, President Muhammadu Buhari has established a committee, to be chaired by the Hon. Minister of Interior, to study and address the updates U.S. requirements. “The committee will work with the U.S. government, Interpol and other stakeholders to ensure all updates are properly implemented.”
Meanwhile the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2019 Presidential election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has appealed to the U.S. President to reconsider its stand.
Atiku in a tweet said: “The current Nigerian administration may have its deficiencies and deep faults, but the Nigeria people ought not to be punished for their inefficiencies. “Nigerians love the United States and have been a major force for the positive development of that great nation: 77% of all Black doctors in the United States are Nigerians. Nigerians are also the most educated immigrant community in America bar none. “Nigeria has also consistently voted in support of the United States and her allies at the @UN and other multilateral world bodies. This is even as we are perhaps the biggest trading partner that the United States has in Africa, even where we had alternatives.”
“The Trump administration may also consider the pivotal role Nigeria, in partnership with the US, played in bringing peace to Liberia, an American sphere of influence, that now enjoys democracy because Nigerian blood and money paved the way for peace in that nation. “Nigeria was one of the few African nations that joined the US-led coalition during Operation Desert Storm between 1990-1991 when the United States championed the liberation of Kuwait,” Atiku said.
“Once again, I call on President @realDonaldTrump to consider adopting measures that individually target those in government who have failed in their duties, rather than target the entire Nigerian population,” Atiku further appealed