President Muhammdu Buhari was recently interviewed by Martine Dennis of Al Jazeera in Qatar.
During the interview, conducted on his last visit to Qatar, Buhari talked about Nigeria’s economic issues, Biafra and othe challenges facing the nation.
Below are the major takeaways from the interview.
1. On Naira devaluation:
The president said Nigeria “virtually imports everything, from rice to toothpicks”, and therefore, cannot afford to devalue its currency.
“If it is against our national interest, why can’t we go against the IMF advice?” Buhari asks.
2. On Biafra agitation: Buhari warned that Nigeria will not tolerate the revived agitation for Biafra.
“Looking for Biafra after two millions people were killed, they are joking with the security and Nigeria won’t tolerate Biafra,” he said.
3. On Islamic Coalition against terrorism: The president said Nigeria has joined the Islamic Coalition against terrorism being championed by Saudi Arabia.
“We are part of it because we’ve got terrorists in Nigeria that everybody knows which claim that they are Islamic,” he said.
READ ALSO: Buhari addresses Biafra issue in a new interview
4. On Boko Haram: Buhari said he has no failed in the fight against Boko Haram insurgency.
“I have not failed. When we came in Boko Haram was effectively in 14 local governments. Nigeria has 774 local governments. They hoist their flags and they said they had a certain caliphate but today they no longer to hold any local government,” he noted.
5. On saboteurs: The president said there were people sabotaging his administration.
He said: “People who want to be fair to us to sit and reflect, from the president to the ministers to the permanent secretaries were all taken over after eight successive governments of those who are now in the opposition. So, we cannot assume that all of them are 100 percent loyal to this government.”
6. On Forex for Nigerians schooling abroad: President Buhari advised parents of those schooling abroad to withdraw their children from the school as the Naira would not be devalued for their benefit.
“We cannot devalue the Naira because some people have their children in schools abroad. So if some parents are finding it difficult to pay, let them return their kids to Nigeria to complete their education,” he said.
7. On falling price of oil: The low oil prices has had a destroying influence on the Nigerian economy, which has long depended on the export of oil.
“We were unable to diversify our economy, hence we are much more disadvantaged by the lower oil prices,” the president said.
The post Biafra, Boko Haram, Naira: Top 7 things Buhari revealed during his Al Jazeera interview (photos) appeared first on Nigeria News today & Breaking news | Read on NAIJ.COM.
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