Buhari’s foreign travels are not enough – Minister

On Thursday, Foreign Minister Geoffrey Onyeama justified the number of foreign trips the president, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (Retd) has made since 2015, adding that the trips were not enough.

Onyeama stated this while answering questions from the press during the second edition of the President Muhammadu Buhari Regime Scorecard Series (2015-2023) in Abuja.

Buhari has traveled out of the country up to 51 times since 2015. However, there are some allegations that the journeys begun did not bring any benefits to the country.

But Onyamama described Buhari as the most effective foreign minister, noting that Nigeria is one of the top countries in terms of economic improvements as a result of his travels.

The minister said: “I would say that President Buhari’s travels are not even enough because you cannot imagine what is being achieved with these personal arrangements between the president and his counterparts. He has been the most effective foreign minister, I would say, one of the best this country has ever had. If it were up to me, I would let him visit more countries, but he refuses.

“Many Nigerians do not appreciate the importance of President Buhari. Knowing the affection and respect with which he is held by other leaders is breathtaking. Some leaders insist that he come to their country, even if he refuses, the countries keep pushing and much has been achieved.

“We had a massive reduction in oil production capacity of two billion barrels, even though the amount we produce per day was below our OPEC quota; less than a million barrels a day and all the other humanitarian challenges in the north combined with terrorism across the country.

“It is a miracle that according to a World Bank projection of countries and economic trajectory, Nigeria is one of the top countries in terms of economic improvements and indicators of improvement. It’s no coincidence. It is because of the hard work Mr President has been able to do in his involvement with countries and to keep the trust of many countries in Nigeria.