Toni Iwobi of Nigerian origin and living in Italy for 41 years has become the first African ever to be elected senator in the country. On the sidelines of the 73rd United Nations General Assembly in New York, Thursday, he met with President Buhari along with a high-powered team from the Italian Senate.
“My congratulations to you, and to Italy more,” President Buhari told Iwobi, who was elected in March this year, on the platform of the far right League Party. “It shows the advanced respect of Italians for human beings, in spite of color. It’s very impressive.”
The team from Italy discussed issues like illegal migration and how it can be curbed through investments in Africa, recharge of the Lake Chad via inter-basin water transfer, among others. “Africa doesn’t need charity, but collaboration to develop,” Iwobi said.
Responding, President Buhari noted that what causes irregular migration from developing to developed countries include lack of security, education, healthcare, among others, stressing, “Climate change has had a negative impact on Nigeria.”
President Buhari has welcomed ¬the pledge by the Organization of Islami¬c Cooperation (OIC) to help Nigeria tackle the Boko Haram insurgency through sound education among others. During a bilateral meeting on Thursday, with OIC Secretary-General, Youssef Ahme¬d Al-Othaimeen, on the margins of the 73rd¬ UN General Assembly in New York, the President also underscored the importance of education in purging the mind of wrong indoctrination, particularly on religion.
The OIC scribe had told the Nigerian President that his organization had passed a resolution committing member states to¬ support Nigeria in combating extremism. He said that the body was ready to use its facilities and institutions to correct the wrong narrative that the Boko Haram insurgency was about Islam. Al-Othaimeen, who noted that development was essential to addressing extremism, also pledged assistance for Nigeria in that respect.
Source: guardian.ng
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