By Jennifer Amarachi
The Arewa Consultative Forum has applauded President Bola Tinubu for allowing a high-ranking Nigerian military mission led by General Christopher Musa to visit the Republic of Niger recently.
Prof. Tanko Muhammad-Baba, the ACF’s National Publicity Secretary, delivered this statement on Sunday in Kaduna.
According to the ACF, the visit marks a favorable shift in Nigeria’s relationship with Niger, which had been tense over the previous year.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has earlier suspended Niger’s membership and imposed a number of sanctions in response, with Nigeria playing a leading role by closing its borders, imposing economic restrictions, cutting off essential supplies, and threatening military intervention.
The ACF said that as the situation evolved, both ECOWAS and Nigeria chose to engage in dialogue with the new Nigerien military regime.
The statement read in part, “The forum views this diplomatic engagement as a crucial step towards restoring the historically close and warm ties between
the two West African neighbors.
“During this time, Niger withdrew its forces from the Multi-National Joint Task Force fighting terrorism in North East Nigeria and formed new alliances with other West African countries like Burkina Faso, Mali, and Guinea.”
During the visit, Musa made some audacious and patriotic remarks that were hailed by the forum as a sign of strength in the fight for African brotherly togetherness.
The ACF urged Niger’s government and people to get past their differences and pursue a new alliance with Nigeria.
