Details Of Tinubu’s Meeting With US Envoy, Molly Phee Emerges
By Our Correspondent
The details of the closed-door meeting between President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the United States (US) Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Molly Phee in the Presidential Villa in Abuja have emerged.
It had earlier been reported that President Tinubu, the Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) received the US presidential envoy in Aso Rock on Saturday, August 26.
Following the meeting, the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale disclosed in a statement made available to state correspondents that his principal advised the Americans to make sure its policy is deliberately cooperative with independent African democracies at a time when they are being attacked by anti-democratic forces both inside and outside of the continent.
To meet the developmental needs of younger democracies in Africa that operate in authoritarian-crowded environments, the President noted that American-backed development finance and multilateral institutions, which were designed to support war-torn Europe after World War II, need swift and comprehensive reform.
This, according to him will prevent the legitimate aspirations of Africans from being used to further the narrow objectives of self-seeking demagogues through unconstitutional means.
“Yes, the private sector will lead the way within an enabling environment we create for them, but the U.S. The government must be innovative in its thinking and systematically create incentives for the U.S. industrial investment in Nigeria.
“Under my leadership, Nigeria stands ready to address its specific regulatory, tax, and environmental concerns. I am determined to create prosperity for all Nigerian families,” the President declared.
The Nigerian leader affirmed that the crisis in Niger Republic would not deter him from concluding his economic reform programme successfully for the benefit of Nigerians and that he takes a queue from no nation, but will only advance the interest of the Nigerian state in his approach toward ECOWAS’ handling of the regional standoff.
“We are deep in our attempts to peacefully settle the issue in Niger by leveraging our diplomatic tools. I continue to hold ECOWAS back, despite its readiness for all options, to exhaust all other remedial mechanisms.
“War is not ideal for my economic reforms, nor the region, but the defence of democracy is sacrosanct. The ECOWAS consensus is that we will not allow anyone to insincerely buy time,” the ECOWAS Chairman affirmed.
Pledging its support for the position of ECOWAS, the U.S. Special Presidential Envoy expressed the high regard the U.S. Administration has for the leadership of the Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, Tinubu, and extended an exclusive invitation from U.S. President Joe Biden to meet on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City to advance discussions further in late September.
“We know there is more we can do to incentivize large-scale American investment in Nigeria and we are committed to working closely with you to achieve that, as part of efforts to strengthen the Nigerian economy and the regional economy.
“We appreciate your willingness to create an enabling environment for that. President Joe Biden is asking to meet with you on the sidelines of UNGA, and you are the only African leader he has requested to meet. It is a mark of his high regard for your leadership,” the U.S. Special Envoy said.
The President concluded that the task of refining democracy is never finished, even in developed democracies, as recently demonstrated in America, as well as other growing democracies throughout the world. He accepted the invitation to meet the U.S. President on the fringes of the UN General Assembly.
