PRESS RELEASE
…Backs FG on Closure of Nigeria’s Border with Cameroon
TOKYO, JAPAN- The Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu has called for stronger parliamentary ties between Nigeria and Japan as the next step towards deepening relations between the two countries.
He made the call at a meeting with the Vice President of the House of Councilors of the Diet of Japan, Hon. Azuma Koshishi on Wednesday in Tokyo, Japan, as part of his working visit to the Asian nation.
The Deputy President of the Senate who was accompanied by the Ambassador of Nigeria to Japan, Hon. Godwin Agbo thanked the Government and people of Japan for their multi-sectorial interventions and support to Nigeria.
Senator Ekweremadu stressed that parliamentary diplomacy was fast gaining ground as a veritable instrument for greater mutual understanding, socio-economic, and political cooperation among nations.
He said: “The trade relations between Nigeria and Japan is on the increase. From USD34 Billion in 2009, it moved up to about USD 58 billion in 2012. So, a lot is happening in the economic and diplomatic areas of our relationship and the time has come to move our relationship to the next level through parliamentary diplomacy.
“I believe that our peoples, businessmen, and corporate institutions have so much to gain from closer parliamentary ties as well as the sharing of the general and peculiar investment opportunities and intervention needs of our nations and constituencies.
In his reply, Hon. Azuma Koshishi expressed happiness over the growing parliamentary ties between both nations and promised Japan’s continued support for Nigeria’s democracy and development.
Meanwhile, the Deputy President of the Senate has also thrown his full weight behind the decision of the Federal Government to shut down Nigeria’s borders with Cameroon along the Adamawa axis over the Boko Haram menace, insisting that “unusual times require unusual measures”.
He stated this during a meeting with over 33 Ambassadors of African nations under the auspices of the African Diplomatic Corps, ADC, Japan.
Senator Ekweremadu who asserted that the Federal Government had waged a highly commendable war against terrorism, said that Nigeria was left with no other choice as the militants exploited the porous borders and their peculiar terrains to unleash deaths and destruction on the Northeastern part of the country.
He said that terrorism was a global phenomenon that required cooperation among nations, governments, and citizens of all countries, insisting that “a threat to one nation is a threat to all nations”.
The Deputy President of the Senate called on the Federal Government not to hesitate to close more border areas that pose threat to Nigeria’s security and peace.
“We need to appeal to our neighbours, especially Cameroun and the Republic of Niger to cooperate with Nigeria for effective monitoring of the border areas to curb the menace of terrorism in the border states of Borno and Adamawa”, he added.
Senator Ekweremadu has also condoled with the government and people of Yobe State over the recent massacre of innocent students in Buni Yadi, Yobe State, describing it as “mindless, beastly, and cowardly”.
Uche Anichukwu
Special Adviser (Media) to the Deputy President of the Senate
