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Pendulum: Ahmed Lawan is Already My Man of the Year

Published

5 years ago

June 22, 2019

Eric

By Dele Momodu

Fellow Nigerians, it is with so much pride and joy that I wish to choose my man of the year, midway to the end of 2019. God’s ways are indeed mysterious. I was a bit uncomfortable and perturbed when the ruling party, APC, was fighting tooth and nail to install Alhaji Ahmed Ibrahim Lawan as President of the Senate and Hakeem Femi Gbajabiamila as Speaker of the House of Representatives. The reason for my reservations and concern was not far-fetched. I had imagined that the only reason was that, as has been typical of the highly touchy and sensitive APC apparatchiks, they must have identified Lawan as a robot they believe would do whatever he’s asked to do by the executiven, no matter how preposterous the assignment may be. It was my belief at the time, the vitriol with which the race was being pursued by the Party hierarchy could only lend credence to the pervading public perception that the Party and the Government wanted to foist a pliable and malleable leadership on the National Assembly. This was particularly the case when the candidates themselves seemed to be maintaining a level of decorum and sense of fairness which the party top-notch seemed to be lacking.

Anyway. Lawan has won the contest by a handsome margin and he is now comfortably ensconced as the head of the Red Chamber of the National Assembly and, as a result, the head of the Federal Legislature. Congratulations to the President of the Senate, Ahmed Lawan, and our dear friend, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, who emerged as Speaker, Federal House of Representatives, also with an even healthier margin. It is noteworthy that their respective victories obviously transcended party lines and that the duo are quite popular amongst their colleagues as the applause and happy buzzing atmosphere that erupted after their elections demonstrates. I pray they both individually and jointly act in the overall interests of Nigeria and Nigerians. I’m of the opinion that their loyalty and allegiance should be to the country, in accordance with the hallowed and solemn oaths that they both took after their elections, and not to any individual or collective of individuals. May God grant them the requisite wisdom and courage to foster peace, fairness and unity at all times in all that they do.

I will not trouble you with a rehash of the antecedents of the new Senate President, Senator Lawan. Much of that information is now readily available. Such is the allure of power, that one can go from relative obscurity to instant fame and stardom. It is pertinent to however note some features of Senator Lawan which I believe has not only catapulted him into the elevated position that he now occupies, but also offers a glimpse as to his personality and what the future may hold for this man who seems destined for greatness. Lawan is a geographer and former university academic who holds a Ph.D. degree from the University of Cranfield, in England, United Kingdom. His Bachelors and Master’s degrees came from the University of Maiduguri and the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, respectively. It is clear that Senator Lawan is a very educated man who has the opportunity of international exposure in his educational formative years. I am partial to academics because I grew up amongst them and I know the expansiveness of their thoughts and views. Clearly, Senator Lawan is a man of this ilk and the views he espouses and his purposive embracing of all-comers in the political and social spectrum shows learning and a cultured background. It accounts for why he is able to reach out to everybody and his willingness to work with all shades of opinion as long as he believes it is the best for Nigeria. Lawan’s accomplishment as both Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee whilst in opposition and the Appropriations Committee in 2015 shows that he is a man his colleagues believe has integrity and accountability. The margin of his victory despite the shenanigans that accompanied the Senate Presidency elections, and the seeming uncertainty before that, typifies a man who is very well respected by his colleagues and seen as a unifying factor. Watching from the distance, I also see Lawan as a man of cool mien and demeanour.

What Nigeria desperately needs today is that unification process which all Nigerians are now stridently and strickenly crying for as they are ravaged and savaged by all manner of disuniting and separatist talk and actions. Nigerians certainly do not need or want the endless wars of attrition being fought by President Muhammadu Buhari and, in particular, his vengeful and neurotic cronies, allies, and foot soldiers who derive so much pleasure in seeking and drawing their pints of blood from real or imagined enemies. Unknown to them, it is not all wars that must be fought because the nation is bigger than them all. However, they studiously ignore this point and only seem to see the here and now. They forget the transience and evanescence of power and the ephemeral and fugacious nature of the intoxicating elixir that excessive and abusive power brews. They regularly flex their muscles and try to bully submissive and already wounded Nigerians into giving in to their bizarre ways.

One of their recent acts of truculence and obnoxiousness arose from an innocuous appointment made by the new Senate President, Mohammed Lawan. And what was the cause of their irritation and irritability? Lawan, in his uncommon wisdom had chosen to embrace meritocracy, competence and capacity by appointing as an aide, Festus Adedayo, a highly cerebral writer and journalist, and a Lawyer in the making, who was to be his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity. The way the APC trolls responded was unbelievably shocking and irrationally jejune. They pressurised Lawan so much that he had to quickly drop Festus like a hot and scorching charcoal. They unleashed a blistering campaign of calumny and obloquy against a man they claimed had committed heresy by criticizing their demi-god, President Muhammadu Buhari. Oh my God! How, they asserted, could Lawan have committed such a huge blunder and colossal faux pas by appointing such an infamous person to enjoy the spoils of war that President Buhari had made possible for all APC legislators by his own might and right?

Unfortunately, and sadly, these are the signs of the times. I can almost bet my life that most of these APC folks who took to venting their unrelenting anger against Festus Adedayo have never read any of his articles which they seek to impugn. They only acted on rumours and hearsay. Even if true that Festus is such an irascible fellow who never saw any good in Buhari, was this not an opportunity to win one of the critics over? Why could none of them see that the fact that Lawan, who is expectedly a protégé of the President had deemed it fit to appoint him would suggest that there was some benefit and advantage to be derived from Senate President and indirectly the APC and the government. Previous administrations have brought in their most vociferous and harshest critics and converted them to their attack dogs. Your worst critics often become your greatest fanatic. So, in Buhari’s Nigeria, all critics of Buhari have been summarily rejected, convicted and regarded as persona non grata without any benefit of doubt or possible rehabilitation. It is indeed a sad moment for Nigeria.

What the APC has inadvertently confirmed is that political appointments are some form of gratification and reward for loyal party men and women and not a call to service. As such, Festus Adedayo was axed and hacked down because he was going to enjoy the soup he did not help in cooking. What chicanery! If his main crime was criticizing the President, I doubt if anyone has criticized Buhari in more trenchant terms than his own irrepressible wife, Mrs Aisha Buhari, a woman whose objectivity and boldness we all hail as refreshing and commendable in a government that regards any form of critique as an attack on its performance and perceived successes.

What the President’s acolytes must realise is that critics are not necessarily the enemies of governments. Critics, even those that are acerbic, caustic and nasty can be like the mad man who enjoys his lucid moments. In their venom one will always find nuggets of golden truths that can illuminate and inspire the government to aim to do even better. In any event, every Government actually needs bold critics to help sharpen and reshape their focus. Buhari will fail, spectacularly, if he continues to live under the illusion of grandeur that he is infallible and beyond reproach. In my view , it is those selfish sycophants, lackeys and hangers-on that have contributed in the portrayal of the President as a spiteful, bitter man who does not forget or forgive. Indeed, I believe that people may have been taking advantage of his style of leadership by delegation to feather their own nests at the detriment of their principal’s reputation and goodwill.

I believe that President Buhari has just wasted what could easily have been a major public relations stunt for his government and party of gladiators and warmongers. Like I am doing now, many people would have hailed not just Lawan, but the entire APC executive and the President for allowing a vocal critic like Festus Adedayo to join the team of the country’s number three citizen. The danger I see is in the vainglorification of APC members and the illusory belief that Buhari is the only saint and no one must ever criticize him.

Nigeria can do much better than this. Our country needs loving and caring leaders and not divisive elements, diversionists and divisionists. If Nelson Mandela was a Nigerian, he would have killed all his enemies when he came out of 27 years’ incarceration, mainly in solitary confinement. But he chose the path of peace and became the world’s greatest statesman. Why can’t my own people borrow a leaf from such remarkable legacy.

Did our leaders not see or notice the peace the Republic of Kenya currently enjoys after President Uhuru Kenyatta and his arch-rival Raila Odinga embraced publicly and apologized to each other. There is much to gain in true reconciliation, obviously.

Nigeria has been effectively taken over by demons who are engaged in wanton destruction of lives and property. There is no other reason for this than the dearth and death of love in our climes. Nigeria is richly blessed with some of the smartest and loving humans on earth. Yet, we have suddenly become so poor of spirit and so suspicious of one another that the cankerworm of disharmony, distrust and deceit has eaten deep into the fabric and soul of our country.

Nigeria should go in search of anyone who can restore hope and glory to our dear beloved nation. That is why Senator Lawan is such a refreshing breath of fresh air that must be celebrated. I am aware that the recent appointments of his personal aides not only cut across party lines and the political divide, he also avoided parochialism and shunned religious bigotry. He did not save plum appointments for his kinsmen or fellow Moslems. He simply decided to choose those he felt were competent even if he did not personally know them. He worked on the basis of proven ability and diligence and passion for Nigeria. It was his reason for choosing Festus Adedayo. However, those who do not care about this nation, but are egotistical and self-absorbed persons immediately rushed to destroy what would have been an epoch momentous development.

DividingNigeria along political, ethnic and religious lines can only deepen the mortal and fatal wounds we’ve sustained these past few years. Someone needs to rise up stoutly and halt our supersonic slide towards perdition. That someone is no other than President Muhammadu Buhari, who needs to take a leaf from Senator Lawan’s book and be more all-inclusive and all-embracing in appointments, purge himself of sickening acolytes and their rabid viewpoints and proceed to keep Nigeria united, peaceful and prosperous.

President Buhari can still live up to the expectations of those who voted for change in 2015. He has one final opportunity. Indeed, he has entered the last chance train. How he acquits himself this time around may well determine whether Nigeria survives or not!

Headline

How FG Spent N19bn on Presidential Planes in 15 Months – Report

Published

2 days ago

November 12, 2024

Eric

At least N19.43 billion has reportedly been spent on the maintenance and operations of the Presidential Air Fleet from July 2023 to September 2024.

According to GovSpend, a civic tech platform that tracks and analyses the Federal government’s spending, showed that for 2024, the payouts amounted to N13.55billion, representing 66 per cent of the allocations for the fleet in the 2024 fiscal year.

Most disbursements were labeled ‘Forex Transit Funds,’ typically funds allocated for foreign exchange requirements to facilitate international transactions and engagements.

In the context of the Presidential Air Fleet, such funds are used to cover expenses related to operations outside the country, including fuel purchases, maintenance or services in foreign currencies.

“When aircraft on the fleet are abroad, payments are often made in U.S. dollars or another foreign currency to ensure uninterrupted operations,” a government official explained.

In July 2023, N1.52bn was disbursed in two tranches of N846m and N675m for ‘Presidential air fleet forex transit funds.’

The following month, N3.1bn was disbursed in three tranches of N388m, N2bn, and N713m for the same item.

In November of that year, N1.26bn was released to the Presidential Air Fleet Naira transit account.

The first overhead for 2024 came in March, where N1.27bn were disbursed twice, amounting to N2.54bn. The transit account received N6.35bn in April, N4.97bn in May and N210m in July.

August saw the highest frequency of transactions, with N5.60bn released in six separate disbursements.

Although these transactions were not clearly labeled, the monies were paid into the Presidential Air Fleet naira transit account, including the N35m transfer made in September.

In late April, the transit account received N5.08bn; this came around the same time the President was on a two-nation tour to the Netherlands and Saudi Arabia.

Although Tinubu arrived in the Netherlands in a state-owned Gulfstream AeroSpace 550 Jet, the aircraft could not proceed to Saudi Arabia due to unspecified technical problems. He reportedly continued his journey on a chartered private plane.

At the time, the President’s Boeing 737 business jet was undergoing maintenance. It was later replaced with an Airbus A330 purchased for $100m in August through service-wide votes.

The nearly 15-year-old plane, an ACJ330-200, VP-CAC (MSN 1053), is “spacious and furnished with state-of-the-art avionics, customised interior and communications system,” Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga said, adding that it “will save Nigeria huge maintenance and fuel costs, running into millions of dollars yearly.”

The new Airbus A330 is just one of several aircraft currently on the Presidential Air Fleet, arguably one of Africa’s largest, with around 11 aircraft of various makes and models. Until August, it comprised the 19-year-old B737-700 and a 13-year-old Gulfstream Aerospace G550.

The BBJ was acquired during the tenure of former President Olusegun Obasanjo at $43m but became a money guzzler as it aged.

Onanuga, defending the purchase of Airbus A330, argued that the new Airbus 330 aircraft and the costs of maintaining the air fleet were not for the president but in the interest of Nigerians.

“It’s not President Tinubu’s plane; it belongs to the people of Nigeria, it is our property…the President did not buy a new jet; what he has is a refurbished jet – it has been used by somebody else before he got it, but it is a much newer model than the one President Buhari used.

“The one President Buhari used was bought by President Obasanjo some 20 years ago. There was a time when the President went to Saudi Arabia, and the plane developed some problems. The President had to leave the Netherlands with a chartered jet.

“Nigerians should try to prioritise the safety of the President. I’m not sure anybody wishes our president to go and crash in the air. We want his safety so that he can hand it over to whoever wants to take over from him,” Onanuga said.

The presidential aide said he discussed with the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, on the faulty plane [Boeing 737 jet] and he said the maintenance costs were excessive because of the age of the aircraft, hence the need for another plane.

The presidential fixed-wing fleet includes a Gulfstream G500, two Falcon 7Xs, a Hawker 4000, and a Challenger 605.

Three of the seven fixed-wings are reportedly unserviceable. Meanwhile, the rotor-wing fleet includes two Agusta 139s and two Agusta 101s, all operated by the Nigerian Air Force but supervised by the Office of the National Security Adviser.

Former President Buhari promised to reduce the number of aircraft in the PAF to the absolute necessary.

In April 2023, three jets were put up for sale, but there were no specifics on which.

However, efforts to sell one of the Dassault Falcon 7x and the Hawker 4000 in October 2016 stalled when a potential buyer reduced their initial offer from $24m to $11m.

Since 2017, budgetary allocations for the fleet have shown a growing trend, with one exception in 2020.

The allocation for the fleet increased from N4.37bn in 2017 to N20.52bn in 2024, showing a 370 per cent rise in running costs.

In 2018, the fleet’s budget rose significantly by 66.13 per cent to N7.26bn, driven by a substantial increase in capital project allocations while maintaining similar levels for recurrent costs. This upward trajectory continued into 2019, slightly increasing the total allocation to N7.30bn.

The exception came in 2020, when the budget dropped by nearly seven per cent to N6.79bn, primarily due to decreased overhead costs, a reflection of the global economic impacts of lockdowns and disruptions in operations.

By 2021, however, the budget surged dramatically to N12.55bn—a record increase of 84.83 per cent from the previous year.

In 2022, maintenance expenses for each aircraft ranged from $1.5m to $4.5m annually.

The 2022, 2023 and 2024 appropriation acts earmarked N12.48bn, N13.07bn and N20.52bn respectively.

On his way to the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit in Samoa, a foreign object damaged the cockpit windscreen of Vice President Kashim Shettima’s GulfStream aircraft during a stopover at JFK Airport in New York.

According to Lee Aerospace, manufacturers of the Gulfstream, jet windshields consist of thick multilayered structures of varying layers of glass and transparent acrylic built to withstand collision with a 2kg object.

However, damage to the windshield must have affected its inner layers. While specific prices for replacement can vary based on supplier, labour rates and regional costs, estimates suggest that a single windshield replacement for a G550 can range from $50,000 to $70,000 for part and labour costs.

In an interview with our correspondent, the General Secretary of the Aviation Round Table, Olumide Ohunayo, blamed the meteoric rise in the allocations for the PAF on the age of some of the aircraft in the fleet and declining value of the naira as well as the “commercial use” of aircraft by the Nigerian Air Force.

Ohunayo said, “The cost will definitely increase over the years because for one, this issue of the naira against the dollar. As the naira keeps falling to the dollar, we will see a rise in cost because most of the costs of training crew and engineers and replacing aircraft parts are all in dollars.

“Also, some of these aircraft are not new. The older the aircraft, the higher the cost of maintenance and operation.

“Lastly, during these past years, terrorism and insecurity have increased in Nigeria, which has also affected the cost of insuring the aircraft.”

For his part, the Executive Chairman of the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, Debo Adeniran, argued that the administration’s spending habits were opposite to Nigerians’ expectations of frugality.

“What we are getting from this administration is opposite to our expectation. We thought we would have an administration that would be frugal in spending and very meticulous at implementing its budget.

“But what we are getting is an administration that has fallen in love with profligacy; that doesn’t see anything wrong in living big amid a poverty-stricken nation.

“It is a reenactment of the Shagari administration, whereby they bought the biggest Mercedes Benz and made themselves as comfortable as possible without considering how much the masses are suffering.

“So when you look at a Vice President saying he’s not travelling [to Samoa] again because there was a splinter on the windscreen of his private aircraft. Why should that be the case?

“First and foremost, we need to be represented at such an international meeting, where we should be well represented by the first two citizens of this country.

“He abandoned that, which means we would have lost certain representation that we deserve at that forum. Two, money will have been spent on advance parties that went ahead of the Vice President. But he abandoned the journey altogether.”

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Pastor Tunde Bakare: Celebrating a Visionary Preacher @70

Published

4 days ago

November 10, 2024

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

He is visionary, blunt, articulate, passionate, fiery, evangelical, fearless, controversial and the newest septugenarian. He is the Founder and Presidng Pastor of the Citadel Global Community Church (CGCC), formally known as the Latter Rain Assembly. He is Pastor Tunde Bakare.

A thought provoking preacher, social commentator, legal expert and politician, Tunde Bakare has come of age in the business called Nigeria.

Born on November 11, 1954, Pastor Bakare is regarded as not only a prophetic-apostolic pastor, but a social and economic image maker, whose contributions to the originality, truth and oneness of the nation cannot be overemphasized.

Originally a Muslim, who embraced the Christian faith in 1974 at the age of 20, Bakare has contributed his quota as a nation builder, seeking both the Vice president and president positions of the nation on two different occasions.

Pastor Bakare started his educational life at All Saints Primary School, Kemta, Abeokuta, and subsequently Lisabi Grammar School, Abeokuta, where he obtained both the School Leaving Certificate and the West Africa Examination Council certificate

After his secondary education, he was admitted into the University of Lagos where he studied Law between 1977 and 1980 before attending Law School in 1981, and was subsequently called to the Bar and following his time in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

Bakare kickstarted his career when he started practicing law at the Gani Fawehinmi Chambers. His dexterity on the job propelled him to Rotimi Williams & Co., and later to Burke & Co., Solicitors.

In October 1984, he went solo, and established his own law firm, Tunde Bakare & Co. (El-Shaddai Chambers). Within the preceeding periods, he combined his legal duties with pastoral functions working as a legal adviser at the Deeper Life Bible Church, and later moving to the Redeemed Christian Church of God, where he became pastor and founded the Model Parish.

Following his time at the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Bakare left to start the Latter Rain Assembly Church in 1989, known today aa CGCC, where he presently serves as the General Overseer. In addition to his time in the church, he zeroed into part time politics, serving as the running-mate to presidential candidate Muhammadu Buhari in the 2011 presidential election. Bakare has been critical of Nigeria’s leadership and has sparked controversy with comments considered inflammatory regarding Muslims and other spiritual leaders.

Also in 2019, Bakare announced his intention to run for president of Nigeria following the end of Buhari’s second term with a total conviction that he has a direct mandate to do and will surely become the next president of Nigeria. He joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) but, lost at the primaries conducted at Eagle Square, Abuja, in May 2022. He launched his then political trajectory under the New Nigeria Progressive Movement.

While expressing his intentions to run for the 2023 presidential election towards becoming the next president of Nigeria to church members in 2019 when he was quoted as saying, “I will succeed Buhari as President of Nigeria; nothing can change it. I am number 16, and Buhari is number 15. I never said it to you before. I am saying it now, and nothing can change it. In the name of Jesus, he (Buhari) is number 15. I am number 16. To this end, I was born, and for this purpose, I came into the world. I have prepared you for this for more than 30 years.”

Bakare also presides over the Global Apostolic Impact Network (GAIN), a network of churches, ministries, and kingdom businesses committed to advancing the Kingdom of God on earth as well as the President of Latter Rain Ministries, Inc. (Church Development Center) in Atlanta, GA, USA, a ministry committed to restoring today’s church to the scriptural pattern. He was given a Doctor of Ministry degree by Indiana Christian University under the leadership of his mentor, Dr. Lester Sumrall, in 1996.

Bakare has been instrumental to some uprisings in the country that challenge unhealthy administrations. It would be recalled that his Occupied Nigeria Movement led the protest against the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan in January 2012 after minor increase in fuel price. The protest was a total success, and led to reduction in fuel pump price.

Also a social critic, Bakare is critical of Miyetti Allah, labeling the Fulani herdsmen as a group of terrorists who rape, murder, and kidnap innocent civilians. Several Fulani Islamic scholars criticized Bakare’s comments about Fulani herdsmen as Islamophobic. Bakare had said that Fulani herdsmen were driving Nigeria towards a civil war.

He also holds a yearly state of the nation address to set the stage for the future and review national issues of the year past.

In his 2019 address, he stated, “We can therefore confidently state that, over the past thirty years, we have faithfully executed our God-given mandate to the nation from this platform. Over the past thirty years, we have deployed appropriate tools for appropriate occasions, from prophetic declarations to confrontational advocacy and from political activism to propositional policy advisory. Over the past thirty years, we have done this consistently, sometimes at the risk of being misunderstood by friends and foes alike.

“We have been motivated not by wavering
opinions of men but by our unshakeable faith in our national destiny and an unalloyed commitment to seeing that destiny fulfilled.”

Reports have it that he was arrested in March 2002 after preaching sermons critical of Nigeria’s then-president, Olusegun Obasanjo.

No matter how it is viewed, and the direction of his controversies, one thing is obvious, Bakare has stood on the side of truth, hope, and justice, and has remained consistent over the years.

The Serving Overseer has been very vocal, his trademark, over the recent hardship in the country, condemning the politicians for preaching what they cannot practice.

He said Nigerian politicians were not living lean or sacrificing like the rest of the citizens whom they asked to sacrifice for the country by enduring economic hardship.

Bakare said this while delivering the keynote address with the theme: “Cultivating a Culture of Dialogue: Nurturing Understanding in a Culturally and Socially Diverse Nation” at Wilson and Yinka Badejo Memorial Lecture 2024.

He is a strong believer in the theory that the pen is mightier than the sword. He write in an essay of same title that:

“The likes of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Kwame Nkrumah, and Chief Obafemi Awolowo, armed with no other weapon, mobilised the Queen’s language in the struggle for independence from the Queen. They fought their battles through such media as West African Pilot, Accra Evening News and The Tribune. Decades after independence, when free, fair and credible elections were annulled, and a tyrannical dictatorship held sway, the Nigerian press took up the baton and contended against the sword of oppression by deploying the armoury of vocabulary. I am so glad that the labours of these pen warriors and all others who fought for the democracy we enjoy today have not been in vain after all.”

For seven decades, Pastor Bakare has remained a voice in Nigeria politics, religion and socio-economic circle, relating with with Nigerians according to where the matter lies.

On this occasion of your 70th Birthday, we celebrate your consistency, focus and leadership acumen that has affected the people positively.

Congratulations sir!

Headline

US Polls: Tinubu, UK PM Starmer Congratulate Trump

Published

1 week ago

November 6, 2024

Eric

President Bola Tinubu has extended his heartfelt congratulations to President Donald Trump on his re-election as the 47th President of the United States of America.

A statement by Special Adviser to the President (Information & Strategy), Bayo Onanuga on Wednesday, said President Tinubu looks forward to strengthening the relations between Nigeria and the United States amid the complex challenges and opportunities of the contemporary world.

Donald Trump claimed victory on Wednesday and pledged to “heal” the country as results put him on the verge of beating Kamala Harris in a stunning White House comeback.

President Tinubu said: “Together, we can foster economic cooperation, promote peace, and address global challenges that affect our citizens.”

According to President Tinubu, Trump’s victory reflects the trust and confidence the American people have placed in his leadership. He congratulates them on their commitment to democracy.

President Tinubu believes that, given President Trump’s experience as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021, his return to the White House as the 47th president will usher in an era of earnest, beneficial, and reciprocal economic and development partnerships between Africa and the United States.

Acknowledging the United States’ influence, power, and position in determining the trend and course of global events, the Nigerian leader trusts that President Trump will bring the world closer to peace and prosperity.

Meanwhile, the British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has congratulated Donald Trump on his “historic election victory”, adding that the UK-US special relationship would “continue to prosper”.

“As the closest of allies, we stand shoulder to shoulder in defence of our shared values of freedom, democracy and enterprise. From growth and security to innovation and tech, I know that the UK-US special relationship will continue to prosper on both sides of the Atlantic for years to come,” he said.