Former Military Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, on Thursday called on Nigerians to support President Bola Tinubu in his effort to relieve Nigeria of the burden of fuel subsidy.
General Abdulsalami made the call while speaking with journalists at the Presidential Villa, after a meeting with President Tinubu.
The former Head of State also appealed to Nigerians to work together as a team and give peace a chance in the interest of the country.
“Let us all give peace a chance, it’s absolutely necessary, because if there’s no peace, there’s no country. In Nigeria, there’s enough for everybody, I will like us to try to be each other’s keeper, to put our hands on deck to move the country forward”, he said.
Speaking on the issue of subsidy, Abubakar said “this subsidy issue has been on and on and off, but Mr President has taken a decision to remove it and I hope we’ll all see how to help him to make sure that he succeeds”.
The visit of the former Head of State is coming two days after the visit of former President Goodluck Jonathan, who was at the Villa to brief President Tinubu on developments in Mali.
Though there is no clue as to the agenda of his visit, it is believed that General Abubakar might just be paying a courtesy visit on the President.
It would be recalled that Abubakar played a stabilizing role in the run up to the 2023 general elections, from which President Tinubu emerged victorious.
It was to the credit of the National Peace Committee, chaired by Abubakar, that all major candidates in the February 29 Presidential election signed a peace accord, which was believed to have largely doused tension during and in the aftermath of the polls.
President Tinubu also met with Muhammad Sanusi II, the former Emir of Kano, who said he was at the Villa to show solidarity for his friend who is taking all the right steps as President.
Sanusi, a one-time Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), also commended the President for solving, once and for all, the double hedged menaces of fuel subsidy and multiple exchange rate regimes.
“The first reason was to come and congratulate him formally, but also because I wear many caps, I wear the cap of an economist so I came to thank him for the steps he has taken to put this economy on course.
“As you know many of the issues that we’ve talking about; the subsidy that has caused a hemorrhage on the fiscal’s, the multiple exchange rates regime and on. These are issues that I have personally been talking about for a long time and I’m happy that on his very first day, he has addressed these issues and the markets are happy.
“It’s important when the government does the right thing for us to give them feedback. It’s not always when they do the wrong thing that we complain. So he has started on such a strong footing and as far as the economy is concerned, we have to come and support and encourage that we continue along that path and be advocates for the policies he has pursued”, He said.
He also said he received the assurances of President Tinubu that the federal government will take a closer look at the Nigerian Air Force raid that killed at least 37 herders in Nasarawa state last January.
In January 2023, the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) accused the Nigerian Air Force of killing its members in the Rukubi community of Doma Local Government Area of Nasarawa State.
MACBAN President, Baba Ngelzarma, alleged that the herders, numbering about 40 were killed by operatives of the Nigerian Air Force Base in Makurdi, Benue State.
According to him, they were returning from Makurdi, the Benue State capital, where they went to retrieve over 1,000 cows seized by the Benue Livestock Guards.
He said that after the payment of fines amounting to N29m, some of the livestock were released to the herders by the guards.
However, they were trailed and killed while offloading the cattle shortly after they reached their destination in Nasarawa.
MACBAN had condemned the attack describing it as a war crime under the Geneva convention that prohibits the indiscriminate killing of livestock.
“I’m concerned with the issue of herdsmen – farmer clashes. He (President Tinubu) is also concerned. And we discussed steps that need to be taken to begin to look at some of those issues.
“But in particular, I came to appeal to him on the case of the 37 herdsmen who were bombed by the airforce in Nasarawa state a few months ago which we wrote a letter to President Buhari on.
“And we have now written a reminder because it was a matter we didn’t want to be swept under the carpet. The President has asked me to send him that letter and I’m sure that he will look into the matter.”
