Daybreak, Politics, Entertainment, Sport

Tag: Antony Blinken

Peter Obi Calls Out US Govt. For Calling Tinubu While Case Still In Court
The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi has reacted to the recent telephone conversation between the United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken and Nigeria’s President-elect, Bola Tinubu.
Obi said the US should respect the principles of law and democracy by allowing the courts of law in Nigeria to decide who the winner of the 2023 presidential election conducted on February 25.
The former Anambra governor said this on Friday in a thread of tweets describing Blinken and Tinubu’s conversation as “unclear.”
Recall that Obi has challenged the outcome of the presidential election that produced Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner.
Blinken had called Tinubu on Tuesday and pledged to strengthen the relations between the US and Nigeria.
Reacting, Obi said, “There is still a lack of clarity on the basis of the U.S. Secretary of State, Antony J. Blinken’s call to APC’s presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu on 16th May 2023. The most fundamental tenet and core value of democracy is the rule of law,” Obi tweeted.
“Nigeria’s democracy is founded on these principles which the American people hold dear. Without the risk of interfering in Nigeria’s domestic affairs, the U.S.-Nigeria relationship should be guided by the core values of democracy.
“Above all, Nigerians expect that the U.S. responses to our affairs should be based on mutual respect, shared ideals, aspirations and interests which ought to transcend the considerations of any individual.”
Contextually, the willful manipulation and falsification of the will of Nigerians as freely expressed during the February 25 elections cannot be overlooked by the true friends and partners of Nigeria.
“It is thus of overarching importance that a beacon of democracy like the United States should not respond to political developments in Nigeria in a manner that faintly suggests taking sides.
“There is an evolving political and judicial process around the last presidential election in Nigeria. We expect the United States to await the full resolution of the ongoing judicial processes before tacitly conferring legitimacy on any of the contending parties.
“The final determination of the true winner of the election can only be made by the relevant courts of law. More so, the issues in judicial contention imply far-reaching violations of both the Nigerian Electoral Law and the Nigerian Constitution.”
May 19, 2023
2023: US Imposes Visa Ban On Nigerians Who Undermined Democracy
The United States has imposed visa restrictions on politicians and people who where involved in undermining the just-concluded Nigeria’s 2023 elections.
According to Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, in a statement on Monday, the US said it is committed to supporting Nigeria’s aspirations to solidify the democratic process and rule of law.
Blinken, however, did not specify individuals that will be victims of the visa bans.
In a tweet on Monday, Blinken said, “We have imposed visa restrictions on specific individuals who undermined the democratic process during Nigeria’s 2023 elections.
“We remain committed to supporting Nigerian aspirations to strengthen democracy and rule of law.”
May 15, 2023
Buhari Receives US Secretary Of State Blinken
President Muhammadu Buhari has received the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken at the State House in Abuja.
Blinken arrived at the presidential complex in a motorcade on Thursday and is expected to have a meeting with Buhari in his office.
The Nigerian leader and US top diplomat are also expected to discuss security issues facing Nigeria especially terrorism in the northern region.
Blinken in on a three-nation African tour. Photo: State House
Blinken will, after the meeting, head to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo’s office to sign some agreements between the US and Nigeria and also hold a joint press conference with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, before leaving the State House.
The US diplomat is on a three-nation tour of Africa and had first visited Kenya where he called for African-driven solutions to the continent’s crises including the spiralling war in Ethiopia — where Nigeria’s former president Olusegun Obasanjo has been leading mediation.
With 20 percent of sub-Saharan Africa’s population and its largest economy, Nigeria is critical for any continent-wide strategy and successive US administrations have courted Nigerian leaders since the restoration of civilian rule in 1999.
buhari blinken
President Buhari receives in audience, the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken. Photo: State House
But US views of Nigeria, already marred by years of violence and rampant corruption, hardened last year after security forces unleashed deadly violence during massive protests against police brutality.
Biden, in an unusually forceful statement as a candidate, voiced solidarity with the protesters and urged President Muhammadu Buhari — whom Blinken will meet Thursday — to rein in security forces.
Senator Bob Menendez, a member of Biden’s Democratic Party who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, at a hearing with Blinken called for a “fundamental rethink of the framework of our overall engagement” with Nigeria.
Congressional objections have held up the sale of 12 US Cobra attack helicopters to Nigeria amid calls to probe whether the military is doing enough to prevent civilian deaths as it battles the two-decade Boko Haram jihadist insurgency.
But Nigeria recently started receiving a separate shipment of Super Tucano warplanes after former president Donald Trump gave the green light to the sale that had been held up by the previous administration of Barack Obama following Nigeria’s accidental strike on a refugee camp that killed more than 100 people.
Removal from blacklist
The US diplomat’s visit comes on the heels of Nigeria’s removal from a US blacklist of nations that violate religious freedom. Photo: State House.
On the eve of his visit, Blinken undid one Trump action by removing Nigeria from a US blacklist of nations that violate religious freedom.
Blinken’s predecessor Mike Pompeo, who did not visit Nigeria, made the decision late in his term at the urging of evangelical Christians who say that attacks on the community in the religiously diverse nation are systematic.
Blinken, in Nairobi, also nudged close ally Kenya on ensuring free and safe elections next year — and acknowledged that the United States was “hardly immune” to such concerns, a veiled allusion to the January 6 mob violence by Trump supporters who sought to overturn Biden’s victory.
Oge Onubogu, West Africa director of the US Institute of Peace, said the Biden administration should see parallels between Nigeria and Ethiopia, where lingering ethnic conflict in a major nation has mushroomed into a devastating war that risks regional chaos.
Blinken, she said, can reinforce the message that “what happens in Nigeria doesn’t only affect Nigeria, but it affects West Africa and the rest of the continent as well”.
Onubogu said there should be no more “business as usual” and that the United States needed to deal more directly with the Nigerian people, not just the government.
Blinken and Buhari pose for a photo during the latter’s visit to Nigeria. Photo: State House.
State Department officials said Blinken would raise human rights in Nigeria and meet civil society groups throughout the trip, which will also take him to Senegal.
“That’s what folks will be looking at. They will be saying, ok, the tone is changing, but they will want more assurances that things are actually changing in the right direction,” Onubogu said.
November 18, 2021
US Removes Nigeria From Religious Violators’ List
US has removed Nigeria from the list of countries “engaging in violation of religious freedom”.
US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, made this known in a statement on Wednesday.
Blinken made the announcement ahead of his visit to Nigeria.
He added that the American government had blacklisted Russia, China and eight others as Countries of “Particular Concern for having engaged in or tolerated ‘systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.”
“The United States will not waiver in its commitment to advocate for freedom of religion or belief for all and in every country. In far too many places around the world, we continue to see governments harass, arrest, threaten, jail, and kill individuals simply for seeking to live their lives in accordance with their beliefs.”
“This Administration is committed to supporting every individual’s right to freedom of religion or belief, including by confronting and combating violators and abusers of this human right.
“Each year the Secretary of State has the responsibility to identify governments and non-state actors, who, because of their religious freedom violations, merit designation under the International Religious Freedom Act.
“I am designating Burma, the People’s Republic of China, Eritrea, Iran, the DPRK, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as Countries of Particular Concern for having engaged in or tolerated “systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.
“I am also placing Algeria, Comoros, Cuba, and Nicaragua on a Special Watch List for governments that have engaged in or tolerated “severe violations of religious freedom.” “Finally, I am designating al-Shabab, Boko Haram, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Houthis, ISIS, ISIS-Greater Sahara, ISIS-West Africa, Jamaat Nasr al-Islam wal-Muslimin, and the Taliban as Entities of Particular Concern,”
In December 2020, the US had listed Nigeria among countries blacklisted for violating religious freedom.
November 18, 2021
US Secretary Of State To Visit Nigeria, Kenya, And Senegal
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken travels to Kenya, Nigeria, and Senegal next week, where he will discuss ending the Covid-19 pandemic and battling climate change.
Blinken will meet with the president of each country to “advance US-Africa collaboration on shared global priorities,” state department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.
Other topics of conversation on the agenda for the Monday to Saturday trip include revitalizing democracies, advancing peace and security, and a more inclusive global economy, Price said.
Blinken travels first to Nairobi, where he will meet with Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and other government officials, and underscore US support for peaceful 2022 elections.
Next, he travels to Abuja, to meet with Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and deliver a speech on US-Africa policy.
He will end his trip in Dakar where he will meet with Senegalese President Macky Sall and other officials.
November 12, 2021
#TwitterBan: Respect The Rights Of Nigerians, US tells Buhari
The US has sent another message to President Muhammadu Buhari over the ban of the microblogging site, Twitter.
In a statement on Thursday, Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State, said restricting social media has no place in a democracy.
He called on Nigeria to reverse the ban and allow freedom of expression.
The statement read, “The United States condemns the ongoing suspension of Twitter by the Nigerian government and subsequent threats to arrest and prosecute Nigerians who use Twitter. The United States is likewise concerned that the Nigerian National Broadcasting Commission ordered all television and radio broadcasters to cease using Twitter.
“Unduly restricting the ability of Nigerians to report, gather, and disseminate opinions and information has no place in a democracy. Freedom of expression and access to information both online and offline are foundational to prosperous and secure democratic societies.
“We support Nigeria as it works towards unity, peace, and prosperity. As its partner, we call on the government to respect its citizens’ right to freedom of expression by reversing this suspension.”
The Federal Government has maintained a hardline stance on Twitter ban despite pressure within and outside the country.
In an interview he granted to ARISE TV earlier on Thursday, the president was asked when he would unban Twitter but he simply said, “I’ll keep that close to my chest.”
Former US President Donald Trump has hailed Buhari over the ban, charging more countries to do the same.
Although Twitter played a crucial role in Trump’s victory and was also instrumental throughout his presidency, the platform suspended him after he incited an insurrection in the last weeks of his stay in the White House.
Friday will make it exactly a week since the Nigerian authorities axed Twitter.
The government has now commenced the process of regulating social media, a move that has been widely rejected.
June 10, 2021