Why terrorism thrives – President Buhari; Says he’s one of the world’s unhappiest leaders; Meets King of Jordan

President Muhammadu Buhari Saturday in Dead Sea, Jordan, urged world leaders to work towards narrowing gaps in social and economic opportunities for citizens as panacea to rising conflicts across the globe, attributing the Boko Haram terrorism in Nigeria to lack of inclusion.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum on Middle East and North Africa, the President, who honoured an invitation by King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein of Jordan, according to a statement by Femi Adesina, his Special Adviser (Media & Publicity) said rising opportunities of prosperity for some people while others struggle to survive trigger tensions and conflicts.

“It is at this point that we must ask ourselves how we, as a region, got to this point. The answer, at least in the case of Nigeria, is the lack of social and economic inclusion.

“As Nigeria celebrated being the largest economy in Africa and one of the fastest growing economies in the world, Nigerians were migrating in droves through harsh desert conditions and across treacherous seas to seek what they believe would be a better life in Europe.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I strongly believe that the lack of social and economic inclusion was the root cause of many challenges we are experiencing,’’ he said.

President Buhari said the changes taking place across the world in technology, population, migration, trade and geo-politics had been yielding both positive and negative results in different parts of the world, calling for more collaboration across borders to alter tides of frustrations that fuel conflicts.

“It is my view, that no region of the world has felt the full impact of these dramatic shifts and shocks like the Middle East and Africa – North and Sub-Sahara.

“On one hand, our region is blessed with a very young, vibrant, enterprising and dynamic population. We also have valuable natural resources that are the envy of many nations.

“These assets and endowments contributed to our region experiencing some of the highest economic growth rates in the world. On the other hand, however, we have also been hosts to some of the deadliest conflicts in recent history. The deaths, damages and destructions caused by terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda, ISIS and Boko Haram over the last ten years will take decades to repair,’’ he added.

President Buhari said terrorism around the world, including Boko Haram, had been significantly degraded, stressing that the insurgents no longer control any territory in Nigeria, but the country had been left with the task of rebuilding.

“In this digital age where physical borders no longer exist to protect even the most secured nations, the only way to overcome predatory and divisionary forces is for all well-meaning nations to work together for the greater good of mankind.

“Simply put, cooperation amongst sovereign nations is no longer a choice. It is an absolute necessity,’’ the President said.

He told the gathering of leaders, entrepreneurs and economic experts that Nigeria’s population is one hundred and ninety million, and by 2050, estimated to hit three hundred and ninety million, making it the third most populous country in the world.

President Buhari said he spent the last four years tackling security issues in the country and implementing policies that make the economy more inclusive.

“We are extremely grateful to the many countries that have stood with Nigeria to confront this global scourge and in particular, the Kingdom of Jordan under the leadership of His Majesty, the King.

“Furthermore, our economic diversification and social inclusion policies are also yielding positive results. Our country has now returned to the path of growth. We are making gains in the ease of doing business indices.

The President said the agricultural sector in Nigeria is driving government’s efforts to diversify the economy, adding that “in the spirit of “Building New Platforms of Cooperation’, we partnered with the Kingdom of Morocco to domesticate fertilizer production in Nigeria and revive over two million tons of abandoned fertilizer blending plant capacity. The outcome is we created tens of thousands of jobs in agriculture, logistics, manufacturing and retail sectors.’’

He said Nigeria had achieved moderate and inclusive growth in four years.

President Buhari said Africa and the Middle East must focus on policies that deliver shared economic prosperity for all citizens, adding that more could be done on trade and investments.

“Opportunities exist in key job creating sectors such as Agriculture, Health, Tourism, ICT, Infrastructure as well as Textile and garmenting to mention a few. Our new, inclusive and diversified Nigeria is definitely open for business. Our population, resources, policies and programs make it the most attractive investment destination in Africa,’’ he said.

In his welcoming remarks, King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein of Jordan said inclusive growth will be of benefit to the entire world, especially when it creates enabling environment for youths and women.

The king of Jordan said opportunities must be expanded fast, while noting that “the challenges we face are not only problems to be solved rather they are opportunities for collaboration.’’

UN Secretary General Secretary-General António Guterres said the world will be better off with stronger collaboration, commending Jordan for playing a historical role in restoring peace in the Middle East, especially between Israel and Palestine.

The founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, Professor Klaus Schwab, who congratulated President Buhari for his re-election for a second term, said discussions at the forum will focus on new ideas, entrepreneurship, innovation, environment, peace and reconciliation.

Meanwhile, President Buhari on Saturday extended appreciation to King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein of Jordan for the continuous support Nigeria received from the country to fight terrorism, saying the investment in Nigeria’s peace and security will always be remembered.

President Buhari, who met with King Abdullah II on the sideline of the World Economic Forum on Middle East and North Africa holding in Dead Sea, Jordan, said the international support Nigeria got, particularly from Jordan, showed commitment to making the world a more harmonious and peaceful place where people can live and pursue their interests without fear.

He said the support and encouragement enabled the Nigeria’s military to degrade terrorism.

The President said both Nigeria and Jordan would need to strengthen trade relations by exploring areas of competitive advantage.

In his remarks, the King of Jordan said his country will continue to support Nigeria with hardwares to ensure that the global war against terrorism is successfully prosecuted.

He said the long term bilateral relations between both countries will be strengthened in trade and innovative ideas that will benefit citizens.

President Buhari also met with the Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources of Saudi Arabia and Chairman of Saudi Aramco, Khalid A. Al-Falih, assuring him that Nigeria remains committed to the terms of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), especially on the quota system.

“We have been working together at OPEC over the years and we know the importance of keeping to all agreed terms,’’ he said.

The Saudi Arabian minister congratulated the President for winning re-election for a second term, assuring him that Saudi Arabia will continue to support Nigeria in its effort to maintain peace and ensure prosperity for its citizens.

In another development, President Buhari has reassured Nigerians that ending banditry remains a key priority of his administration and that he would do whatever it takes to ensure the country’s security system confronts these public enemies with merciless determination.

Reacting to the recent spike in reported incidents of banditry and kidnappings in some parts of the country, a statement by Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media & Publicity), said that President Buhari while condoling all those affected by the unfortunate events, described himself as one of the unhappiest leaders in the world.

“How can I be happy and indifferent to the senseless killings of my fellow citizens by bandits? I am human and I understand the pains of the victims and their families who have been traumatized and impoverished by constant ransom demands by bandits”, the President said empathetically.

“The politicisation of tragedy reveals the darkest sides of our primitive politics. Almost every week, I summon my security chiefs to get an update on the strategies being devised to defeat these mass murderers.

“There is no issue that dominates my mind every 24 hours like security because, as an elected President, protecting the citizens of my country is one of the primary functions of my administration.

“I constantly listen to our security personnel in order to understand their problems and needs, and I have never hesitated to attend to those needs in terms of motivating and equipping them to respond effectively to our security challenges.

“It is therefore ridiculous to suggest that I am indifferent to these killings.

“I have ordered rapid and robust deployment of troops to all the areas currently under attack from bandits and we are determined to tackle this challenge ferociously until these remorseless killers are crushed and utterly defeated,” the President said.

He called on communities where banditry is active to support and cooperate with the security agencies, particularly the recently launched Operation Puff Adder to battle bandits and kidnappers.

The President said it was regrettable that bandits have informants within some communities and utterly reprehensible that certain communities have signed protection deals with bandits at the expense of other communities, thereby creating complications and frustrating government’s intervention

He appealed to communities to report suspicious movements of the bandits into their areas within the shortest available opportunity, especially considering the fact that intelligence is critical to detecting, frustrating, neutralising and defeating the criminals.