President Buhari’s United States Visit – Key Points

Nigeria and United States on Collision Course

Introduction

The hyped visit to the United States by President Muhammadu Buhari climaxed with a meeting with US President Barack Obama.  Events from the visit are currently being digested by both Abuja and Washington DC respectively. The important points or lessons from the visit leans more on the Nigerian side for a nuanced trajectory that may emerge positively if pursued with vigour. There is strong case for optimism in Nigerian diplomacy with US in view of a number of salient developments as a result of the visit.

Important Points

In retrospect, it is now obvious that concluding an early visit by the President to the United States removed apparent diplomatic ambiguity further down the road. Nigeria is an important country that cannot isolate itself even if there is internal consensus on the issue, a rushed job will be ineffective. Of course the usual naiveté of Nigerian elite including an APC governor owing pension arrears of nearly 7 months and a tactless CBN governor stresses points of departure for relevance/irrelevance of such visit. 

• Now that President Buhari has met eye-ball to eye-ball with President Obama, minds have settled on a number of issues. Relationship between both countries has reached a critical point irrespective of Nigerian administration. Essentially time will tell if tangible benefits to Nigeria will emerge direct/indirectly.  It is refreshing that President Buhari continued President Jonathan’s position on illegality of homosexuality and the cultural abhorrence to Nigerian peoples. Curiously President Obama has become homosexuality evangelist confirming that Nigeria/Africa has no credible interlocutor in the White House.

• On Boko Haram, there remains lack of clarity on Nigeria’s narrative. Prior to advancing merits/demerits of seeking Washington DC’s paid assistance critical questions are marginalised. Who are the stakeholders in favour of Boko Haram? What is their objective? What is the relationship between Boko Haram emergence and US war on terror? Who is providing Boko Haram with logistics, funding, supply-chain of sophisticated weapons systems and telecommunication systems?

• A non-state actor cannot successfully pursue a ‘merchandise of death’ with impunity far from populated areas for so long without internal and external support with geopolitical pedigree. For some reason Abuja and most of Nigerian elite are either deliberately blasé or are simply blabbing platitudes nourished by ignorance.

•      Review these facts and conclude the main agent of Africa’s instability; 2011 Libya was attacked and destroyed by NATO/US under President Obama with Nigeria’s acquiescence, then Mali collapsed in tow followed by Central Africa Republic. In all these France led the way under Washington DC imprimatur with Nigeria’s encirclement as a result. There are US drone bases in Ouagadougou Burkina Faso and Niamey Niger respectively; these geopolitical investments including USAFRICOM are national security risks to Abuja. Information emerging from Abuja lacks nuance, consistency and credibility.

One need only to review the photographs of the Presidential visit to suggest numbness in some of the guests, their star-struckness and immediate disconnection with their mission/citizens. Nigerians have been sold down the river before on diplomatic and geopolitical fronts. Nigeria is very low on US priority list even on Africa.

There is renewed potential for the administration to commence gradual reappraisal of Anglo-US worldview which has suffocated and continues to suffocate Nigerian elite in view of reconfiguring global geopolitical of which US has become one of the players rather than the sole player. 

US has drastically reduced if not stopped crude oil purchases from Nigeria. While a rushed demarche is unnecessary, Abuja is best placed in history to commence a gradual review of Nigeria’s foreign policy towards a better reflection of global reality. China has come to town, Russia is hovering in the horizon and post-independence era is closing in for a new epoch.

There will be a test of wills between both capitals on many fronts including the so-called anti-corruption drive with promised US support. Abuja must move cautiously with formidable tact to protect Nigeria’s strategic interest as Washington DC will bring pressure to bear toward extracting new (latent) concessions. It is essential for Abuja to review its position as ‘regional policeman’ vis-a-vis State Department, a throwback to Clinton doctrine. 

It must be stressed that these expectations even with positive intention takes time to bear fruit. Washington DC will disappoint Abuja on many fronts throughout this administration. Abuja should boldly pay close attention to recent US reverses on Cuba and Iran to cast her net wide for nuanced re-calibration. The only key to such development is guaranteed internal cohesion, excellent performance of state governors and consolidation of institutions with the Senate as the lowest hanging fruit ripe for comprehensive treatment.

Conclusion

With United States visit now in the backburner, Abuja’s attention must refocus on the currency of internal institutional changes towards the upliftment and confidence of citizens.  This is an urgent expectation and task, with huge capital of patience and resilience from the good peoples of Nigeria. They are the voters and only they deserve the true rewards of electoral deliverance by the administration of President Buhari. No ifs, no buts! QED.