By Dele Ogbodo
President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday said that he chose to visit Chad, Niger, Cameroon, and Benin Republic on assumption of office in 2015
because it will cost Nigeria less to secure the country, fight corruption and revive the economy with good neighbourliness.
According to him, government will spend less money on security, and deploy more resources to infrastructural development, when you are in good terms with your neighbours
The president who made the disclosure at the State House when he received the outgoing Ambassadors of Ethiopia and Turkey, said the core policies of his administration is focused on securing the country, fighting corruption, and reviving the economy.
He said: ‘’Nigeria will continue to deepen relationships with her allies, particularly those with whom she shares mutually beneficial interests.
“Security and economic development are crucial to any country, and that was why I visited our immediate neighbours once I got to office.
“I visited Chad, Niger, Cameroon, and Benin Republic. You will spend less money on security, and deploy more resources to infrastructural development, when you are in good terms with your neighbours.’’
President Buhari congratulated Ethiopia on the political stability that has been attained in the country, after a recent change of the Prime Minister.
Amb Gutu in her remark, described Nigeria and Ethiopia as “strategic partners” who have deep relationship, adding that her over three-year stay was a period that saw the furtherance of bilateral relations between the two countries.
President Buhari, also congratulated Hakan Cakil, the Turkish Ambassador, on the close relationship between the two countries, and thanked Turkey for academic scholarships granted scores of young Nigerians recently.
Cakil in her remarks lauded government and private investments in Nigeria in diverse areas like education, medical institutions, and others.
Cakil, who was on tour of duty for about three years, noted that Nigeria was his country’s most strategic partner in sub-Saharan Africa.
“I had my first ambassadorial posting here, and I am lucky that during my time, the President of Turkey came here, and the Nigerian President was also in Turkey. I will never forget it,” he stated.