May 29: Obama Pressured To Attend Buhari’s Inauguration

United States President, Barack Obama

With the inauguration of President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President-elect, Yemi Osinbajo fast approaching, the White House is under pressure on who to represent the United States at the May 29 event.

A pro-Africa U.S. lobby group in Washington DC and the Christian Association of Nigerian-Americans (CANAN) are requesting President Barack Obama to attend the event himself, while the immediate past U.S. Assistant Secretary of State, Johnnie Carson, is asking the president to send his deputy, Vice President Joe Biden, to lead the American delegation to the event
Carson over the weekend in a statement, advised the U.S. President to visit Nigeria in July while heading out to East Africa as already announced.

According to a White House spokesperson, Natalie Wozniak, said the U.S. President is not ready to announce a delegation to the Nigeria’s presidential swearing-in ceremony.

Because such an announcement is expected in the forthcoming week based on traditional practices by the White House.

With regards to the Buhari-Osinbajo inauguration, Ambassador Carson noted that “President Obama should send a high level delegation to President Buhari’s inauguration in Abuja on May 29.”

However CANAN and another leading U.S. group released separate statements asking President Obama to be personally present at the event in Abuja.

The group-Constituency for Africa- is considered one of the leading organizations in the US “committed to educating and mobilizing the US public on matters pertaining to Africa.”

CANAN’s president, Melvin Foote, in the statement argued that “last month, Nigeria completed its election process in a peaceful and transparent manner. While the U.S. applauded this positive feat, our involvement cannot conclude just yet. In fact, in some ways, it is only just beginning — which is why I strongly urge President Barack Obama to attend the inauguration of President-Elect Mohammadu Buhari on May 29.”

“By attending the inauguration personally, Obama will cap the whole affair graciously and end the controversial fallouts of the exclusion of Nigeria in his prior visits to Africa. CANAN wishes the President take a very deep reflection on this matter and add a great spur to the ferment of change that is ongoing in Nigeria by being personally present at the Buhari-Osinbajo inauguration on May 29. It will set a new tone not only in US-Nigeria relations, but in US relationship with Africa as a whole.”

He suggested that by sending a high powered delegation to the presidential inauguration in Nigeria and then dropping by in Nigeria on his way to East Africa in July, President Obama can bring about a new beginning between Nigeria and the U.S. with the emergence of the Buhari-Osinbajo presidency.

There were reports earlier that President Obama is planning to send a high-powered, presidential delegation possibly led by his wife, First Lady, Michelle Obama, the VP, Joe Biden or the Secretary of State, John Kerry.

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