Boko Haram: Buhari to visit Cameroon after Ramadan fast

By The Citizen

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday accepted an invitation from President Paul Biya to visit Cameroon at his earliest convenience.

According to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, talks during the visit would centre on the intensification of cooperation between Nigeria and neighbouring countries in the war against Boko Haram and terrorism.

Adesina said Buhari accepted the invitation while receiving the Cameroonian Minister of Territorial Administration and Decentralisation, Mr. Sadi Emmanuel, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He further quoted the President as saying that he will visit Cameroon for the high-level talks soon after the end of the Ramadan fast.

He said Buhari told his guest that he was putting his experience as a former soldier to good use in the war against Boko Haram.

The President reportedly emphasized that greater  regional and international cooperation was needed to end the atrocities of the terrorist group.

He commended the efforts of all regional governments, including Cameroon to support Nigeria in the war against Boko Haram, but called for even greater collaboration.

'I am happy that the President has sent you. As you must have observed,  I was in Niger and Chad over this issue. I planned to be in Cameroon afterwards, but I received an invitation to attend the Group of Seven (G7) meeting in Germany.

'I had to attend the meeting because Boko Haram has been internationalized and it was part of the discussions there,' he told Mr. Emmanuel.

The Special Envoy assured President Buhari of Biya's 'fraternity, sympathy and brotherly commitment' to working with Nigeria to end the Boko Haram insurgency.

'Together, we will reinforce our efforts, eradicate the scourge of terrorism and look forward to better things,'' he told the President.