– President Buhari tacitly rejects request to join Islamic
states coalition against terror
– Drums support for the coalition in the fight against
terrorism
President Muhammadu Buhari meets with Saudi Arabian
leaders.
Reports say President Muhammadu Buhari shocked the
Saudi Arabian government over a request to join the
Coalition of Islamic States to fight against terror.
According to This Day, Buhari, who is on a week-long visit
to Saudi Arabia and Qatar, stylishly rejected the request
by his host and ruler of Saudi Arabia, King Salman Bin
Abdul-Aziz, to join the coalition.
Speaking at a bilateral meeting between the countries,
Buhari said that Nigeria would rather support them than
join the coalition.
After congratulating the Saudi Kingdom on the formation
of the coalition, Buhari said: “Even if we are not a part of
it, we support you.
“I must thank the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the recent
creation of a coalition to address the menace of
international terrorism.
“Nigeria will support your efforts in keeping peace and
stopping the spread of terror in your region. This is in
consonance with our own commitment and on-going
efforts in seeking to stamp out Boko Haram terrorists from
the West African sub-region and Lake Chad Basin
Commission (LCBC).”
During a meeting with the Nigerian community in Saudi
Arabia, President Buhari said all those involved the
‘padding’ of the 2016 National Budget will face the most
severe punishment.
“The culprits will not go unpunished. I have been a military
governor, petroleum minister, military Head of State and
headed the Petroleum Trust Fund.
“Never had I heard the words ‘budget padding’. Our
Minister of Budget and National Planning did a great job
with his team. The Minister became almost half his size
during the time, working night and day to get the budget
ready, only for some people to pad it.
“What he gave us was not what was finally being debated.
It is very embarrassing and disappointing. We will not
allow those who did it to go unpunished,” President Buhari
vowed.