President Buhari’s Us Trip

TODAY, President Muhammadu Buhari will leave for the United States (US) on a four-day official visit. This is apparently in honour of President Obama’s invitation to host our president on July 20. This visit is expected to infuse a new verve into the relationship between the two countries after the frost that shrouded that relationship during the Goodluck Jonathan administration.

Interestingly, the government has given insight into what the president might discuss with his American counterpart during his visit. Exchanges between Buhari and Obama will focus on security, war against terrorism, as well as trade and economic relations. In pursuit of these issues, the president and his entourage will interface with US state actors, namely, President Obama, Vice-president Joe Biden, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey and the Deputy Secretary of Defence, Robert Work. Other actors and agency that Buhari will meet are the US Attorney-General, Loretta Lynch, the US Secretary of Treasury, Jack Lew, the US Secretary of Commerce, Penny Pritzker, the US Trade representative, Michael Froman, John Kerry, the United States Secretary of State, the US Senate, Congressional Committees on Foreign Relations and the Black Caucus of the US House of Representatives. This horde of US state actors indicates possible direction of the conversation between the two countries.

Nevertheless, this visit warrants close scrutiny and necessary counsel to the Buhari and his entourage. We begin with the worn maxim that in international relations, there are no permanent friends and no permanent enemies but permanent interests. Nigeria’s interests could be briefly summed up as the protection of its national sovereignty at all times, the economic prosperity of the country and security of lives and property. Currently, a number of problems confronting these interests are the raging insurgency in the north-eastern tip of the country; economic recession due to the dip in the price of oil, the mainstay of our national economy, and blatant corrupt practices by public officials. How do these interface with that of the US?

There are some points of convergence between US and Nigerian interests. The US is ranged against terrorism on a global level and the Boko Haram insurgency is apparently one of the most brutal terrorist organisations in Africa today. Cooperation with Nigeria is inevitable in this regard. This does not call for boots on the ground, but rather training, equipment and intelligence exchange are what Nigeria needs. A related issue is the Africa Command of the US army currently headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany for which attempt had been made to locate in Africa and over which there is a prevailing continental resistance. Certainly, this is not an issue to be compromised. Africa does not need an occupation force under any guise.

US desires to invest in Africa more so to rival Chinese inroad. The US-Africa summit of 2014 underlined this fact. Nigeria is such a huge market for US investors and they are welcome to invest in Nigeria in ways that are mutually beneficial far away from hot money seeking immediate realisation. Also, the international community is averse to money laundering particularly to prevent funds from falling into the hands of terror groups. US leads in this regard. Nigeria’s economy bleeds and the US must assist the country to retrieve stolen public funds on its own soil, whether hidden in commercial banks or covert agencies. This will certainly boost the Buhari administration’s war against corruption and infuse some tonic into the economy.

The President has in his entourage state Governors of Imo, Nasarawa, Edo, Borno, Oyo, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and Permanent Secretaries of the Ministries of Defence, Foreign Affairs, Industry, Trade and Investment. While we wonder what meaningful contribution some persons in the entourage could make, we suggest that the recently recalled Nigerian Ambassador in the US be included in the delegation as the man who knows the turf currently speaking. A conversation with US state elites demands we field our skilled personnel. The White House hopes that the visit will strengthen the US long-lasting friendship with Nigeria. However, the president should treat this visit as exploratory since his administration is yet to be fully formed and should make no commitment to the prescriptive diktats of his host. He should rather listen and say less. He has on his laps a historical opportunity to present the new face of Nigeria to the world and his American audience.