The outgoing president joked that if somebody tried to attack him after he left office, the people of the Niger Republic would stand up for him. This was spoken during the launching of the Nigeria Customs Service’s (NCS) new corporate headquarters in Abuja.
For both personal and national grounds, President Buhari stressed the need of forging strong ties with neighboring nations during his administration.
Recounting his first trips to Niger, Chad, and Cameroon after taking office, he emphasized the need of winning the trust and cooperation of surrounding countries.
“That is why when I became the President, my first visit was to Niger, Chad and Cameroon because, based on personal and national issues, the neighbourhood is very important.
“If you don’t secure the confidence and cooperation of your neighbours, you are in trouble, your children and grandchildren will be in trouble.
“So it is very good that I established a relationship with my neighbours. I said these few things about my personal belief because I have only six more days to go. And I try to plan to be as far away from Abuja as possible.
“Thank goodness, I come from an area which is far away from Abuja. I said if anybody forces me, I have a good relationship with my neighbours, Niger people will defend me.”
Those in attendance at the commissioning ceremony found President Buhari’s remarks amusing.
However, some Nigerians have regularly criticized the president, mockingly referring to him as more “Nigerien” than Nigerian. His frequent trips to the Niger Republic and the initiatives he has undertaken, which appear to benefit the neighboring nation, are what gave rise to this view.
