There are indications that some
officials at the Nigerian Embassy in New York, United States, may be
sanctioned following a mix-up of President Muhammadu Buhari’s itinerary
at the 70th United Nations General Assembly meeting last Friday.
Already, the Federal Government is
expecting a report on the incident in which Buhari was barred from
attending a meeting with Pope Francis by UN security operatives.
It was gathered that the President was
prevented from joining his colleagues at the meeting with the Pope
because he did not pass through the gate that was reserved for
presidents.
The President was also said to have
arrived late at the meeting because protocol officials of the Nigerian
embassy allegedly messed up his itinerary.
A source explained that Buhari was not properly briefed by the Nigerian Mission, which accounted for the mix up of his schedule.
The spokesman for the ministry, Ogbole
Ahmedu-Ode, stated that the MFA was expecting a report on the incident
at the United Nations.
He
declined to say whether the officials responsible for the incident
would be sanctioned, adding that the report would determine the step
that would be taken by the ministry.
“The ministry is expecting a report on
the incident in New York; it is a normal procedure for the mission to
send report on whatever happens. So, until we get a report on the
alleged mix up of the President’s itinerary, I cannot say what would
really happen or whether the officials would be sanctioned,” Ahmedu-Ode
said over the telephone on Monday.
Reuters had reported that the
President earlier missed an event on Boko Haram and internally displaced
persons on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.
The event, which focused on the Lake
Chad Basin and the effects of insurgency, was organised by the United
Nations Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs and chaired
by Stephen O’Brien, under-secretary general of the UN.
It was scheduled for 3pm US time, but
the programme prepared by the Nigerian mission did not list it on the
President’s itinerary.
But the Presidency stated that the missed meeting was not part of the official events lined up for the President.
The Senior Special Assistant on Media
and Publicity to the President, Garba Shehu, denied that the President
missed the event. He said that Buhari was not scheduled to attend the
programme.
“The meeting at which Nigeria was
reportedly absent was not one of the official events of the United
Nations for which President Muhammadu Buhari and his modest delegation
are in New York for,” Shehu stated.
Punch
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