Buhari Missing UN Meeting On Boko Haram: UN Counters Nigerian Presidency

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), has said Nigeria was officially informed and properly invited to the high level meeting where Boko Haram insurgency in the Lake Chad Basin was discussed.

Speaking exclusively to Premium Times, a spokesperson for UNOCHA, Jens Laerke, who is based in Geneva said an invite was sent to the permanent representative of the Nigerian mission to the United Nations as well as to the office of the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, prior to the departure of the Nigerian delegation to the 70th session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly.

This counters claims by the presidency that they were neither informed nor invited to the meeting.

Reports had surfaced at the weekend that the Nigerian delegation UN general Assembly had missed an important meeting where help for displaced persons were to be discussed.

In reaction, Garba Shehu, the senior special assistant on media and publicity to the president, had said the meeting which the Nigerian delegation missed was not one of the official meetings President Muhammadu Buhari and his delegations were due to attend at the United Nations.

Laerke said: “I’m almost 100 per cent sure that Nigeria was invited. One of the reasons was that I read the original speech by O’Brien in which he acknowledged the presence of the Nigerian government.

“Actually, the government was invited both by direct communication to the Vice President and then subsequently through the permanent representation in New York.

READ ALSO: New York: President Buhari Absent At UN Meeting On Security, Terrorism Issues

“My colleague told me he actually went there personally to hand over the invitation to make sure they receive the invitation. We really made an effort to make sure the government was aware of the invitation because we really want them to come.”

The spokesperson for UNOCHA could however, not provide a documentary evidence that the Nigerian mission was actually informed, and indeed received and acknowledged the invitation as he demanded an official letter before that could be made available.

When Garba Shehu, the presidential spokesperson was contacted on the insistence by the UN that Nigeria was invited to the event, he replied: “Ask them to give you evidence that the invitation was delivered, and the name of the staff who received it. Prof. Joy Ogwu said there was no invitation. We need evidence before anyone can say what she said is inaccurate.”

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had yesterday condemned the absence of President Buhari and the Nigerian delegation at one of the key listed meeting.The PDP had said their absence at the meeting showed the ineptitude of the handlers of the President on national and international issues.

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