Former governor of Sokoto State, Attahiru Bafarawa, has urged Nigerians to rally round President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the country faces an existential threat from US President, Donald Trump.
Trump had designated Nigeria a country of Special Concern following an alleged genocide against Christians in Nigeria.
The US president had also instructed his war secretary to prepare for an eventual attack on Nigeria.
The former Sokoto governor, in a statement he personally signed and made available to newsmen, said there’s no other time that Nigerians of all persuasions need to support the president for him to succeed than now.
In the statement entitled ‘Let’s Help Tinubu To Succeed’, Bafarawa President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is trying to reposition the country and put it in a sound footing.
Bafarawa said that support for the president has become imperative considering the enormous challenges that the country is facing. This support, he said, should cut across religion, ethnicity, region, and even political affiliations.
“I want Nigerians of whatever affiliation to toe this path of oneness because President Tinubu’s failure is our failure, and his success is our success.
“Nigerians should, therefore, join hands together to enable the president to succeed.
Bafarawa’s charge is coming on the heels of the threat from the government of the United States (US) to take military action against Nigeria over allegations that Christians in Nigeria are facing genocide under the watch of President Tinubu.
“The US Congress had recently launched an investigation into reports of Christian genocide in Nigeria and came up with the conclusion that it was real. In the light of the report from Congress, the Donald Trump Presidency labelled Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern, and threatened to take military action against the country if the ugly trend was not halted.
He said that this development is now a source of grave concern not only to the Tinubu presidency but also to all Nigerians.
Consequently, while appealing to Nigerians to support the Tinubu administration, Bafarawa wants Tinubu to work harder in the area of securing the country so that situations which have brought about the threat from the US would no longer arise.
Bafarawa urged the president to take the concerns of the international community on the security situation in Nigeria seriously and redouble his effort in the area of taming insurgency and other forms of criminality in the country.
“Beyond all this, I am offering a piece of advice to Tinubu. He should be the president to shun the path of confrontation in this matter. Instead, I advise the Tinubu administration to reach out to the American government in order for them to hear Nigeria’s version of the story.”
“America and Nigeria, Bafarawa said, are strategic partners in international politics and diplomacy. It will, therefore be in the best interest of Nigeria to foster and strengthen this long-standing relationship, ” the former governor added.
