Former Vice-President and the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the last general election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, on Thursday wrote a message of goodwill to the newly sworn-in United States President, Joe Biden, urging him to assist Nigeria on some challenges.
In a statement titled, “Message of Goodwill To President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris”, Atiku noted that many challenges bedevilling Nigeria required the U.S. intervention.
He said, “As President Joe Biden begins his tenure as the 46th President of the United States of America, I am confident that this new era will mark America’s regeneration and her reaffirmation as the beacon of democracy to the world.
“As I congratulate President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, I urge them and their administration to strengthen US-Nigeria ties and help our beloved nation’s war on terror by providing every type of support required to win our battle against the insurgency we face and that threatens the peace of our sub-region.
“I also look forward to the removal of every travel restriction on Nigerian citizens, in keeping with the good relations that have existed between our two nations, beginning with the July 27, 1961 state visit of our first Prime Minister, Alhaji Tafawa Balewa, to President John F Kennedy, and continuing over the decades since then.
“As the playwright, George Bernard Shaw once said, America and Nigeria are two nations divided by a common language. And millions of Nigerians and I wish to see that relationship sustained to the mutual benefit of our democratic countries.
“Congratulations once again and may God bless both our nations and bring about a beneficial tenure for your administration.”