CONFIRMED: Buhari Travels To New York For UN Assembly Amid Insecurity, Human Rights Violations In Nigeria

President Muhammadu Buhari will on Sunday travel to New York to participate in the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, in confirmation of SaharaReporters’ report on September 10.

 

According to Femi Adesina, presidential spokesman, Buhari will address the Assembly during the General Debates on Friday, September 24 when he will speak on the theme of the conference and other global issues.

“President Muhammadu Buhari will depart Abuja Sunday for New York, United States of America, to participate in the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA76),” Adesina said in a statement.

“The session opened on Tuesday, September 14. The theme for this year’s UNGA is, “Building Resilience Through Hope – To Recover from COVID-19, Rebuild Sustainably, Respond to the Needs of the Planet, Respect the Rights of People and Revitalize the United Nations.”

“President Buhari will address the Assembly during the General Debates on Friday, September 24 when he will speak on the theme of the conference and other global issues.

“In the course of the Assembly, the Nigerian leader and members of the delegation will partake in other significant meetings such as; The High Level Meeting to Commemorate The Twentieth Anniversary of the Adoption of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action on the theme “Reparations, Racial Justice and Equality for People of African Descent.”

“The delegation will also participate in Food Systems Summit; High Level Dialogue on Energy; and The High Level Plenary Meeting to commemorate and promote the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.

“The President will also hold bilateral meetings with a number of other leaders of delegations and heads of International Development organisations.

“He will be accompanied to New York by Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama; Attorney General and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami (SAN); and Minister of State for Environment, Sharon Ikeazor.

“Also on the President’s delegation are: National Security Adviser, Maj-Gen. Babagana Monguno (retd); Director-General, National Intelligence Agency, Amb. Ahmed Rufai Abubakar; Chairman, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa and the Senior Special Assistant to the President on SDGs, Mrs Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire. President Buhari is expected back in the country on Sunday, September 26.”

SaharaReporters had on September 10 exclusively reported that the President would depart Abuja on Sunday, September 19 to attend the conference amidst insecurity and gross human rights under his administration.

“The team going with him (Buhari) to the USA for the United Nations General Assembly leaves on Tuesday. The President will leave Abuja next Sunday to join them,” a presidential source had told SaharaReporters.

SaharaReporters also reported how Buhari’s Chief of Staff, Prof Ibrahim Gambari, among other officials, travelled to the US to infiltrate the ranks of Nigeria’s self-determination groups, which earlier announced that they would storm the UN Assembly with demands for a referendum.

 

A top source had said that while Buhari would be attending the UN Assembly, the entourage led by Gambari, who is a diplomat and former top UN official, was sent ahead to weaken the strengths of the agitation groups before the President’s arrival.

“The UN programme is starting on September 18. The Chief of Staff is leaving for USA tomorrow (Thursday) with some people working with him, including his personal Assistant, Luqman Bosun Emiola. No one knows when they will be back but they are not supposed to have any business with the President’s trip.

“Buhari will be attending the UN General Assembly but the Chief of Staff already left,” the source had said.

Despite being a former Army General, the level of insecurity under Buhari’s administration has worsened with virtually all parts of the country currently battling one form of violent crimes or another.

The Global Terrorism Index (2019) ranked Nigeria as the third-worst nation prone to terrorism with no improvement since 2017.

Aside from insurgency, banditry, kidnapping and secessionist violence are pushing Nigeria towards the brink of collapse with many calling for the resignation of the President for “failing” to secure the country.

Using security operatives, the Buhari-led government is also known for harassing, assaulting and intimidating journalists, human rights activists, protesters and critics of the government.

The government has also shown hostility to Nigerian Judges and indifference to court judgments and orders, thereby seriously undermining their standing and authority, and the notion of access to justice.

His administration is also notorious for ignoring court judgments and orders.

Buhari has literally normalised disobedience to court orders, and state-sanctioned brutality against peaceful protesters.

The administration also continues to violate human rights with impunity.