Naijainfo1960 Blog: Why Buhari Cancelled US Trip

Thursday 5 February 2015

Why Buhari Cancelled US Trip - Politics

•Certificate saga, human rights records scare APC candidate

IT emerged on Saturday that the Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), General Muhammadu Buhari jettisoned his advertised trip to the United States of America because of the fear of being questioned over his involvement in the post 2011 election violence and his certificate saga.

The APC Campaign Organization had confirmed two weeks ago that the General would visit the United States to address some Diasporal Nigerians, but it emerged last week that Buhari had jettisoned the trip on fears his compatriots would batter him with questions over his involvement in the 2011 election saga which led to the death of 800 Nigerians, including ten Youth Corps members.

The Northern Coalition for Democracy and Justice (NCDJ) a group of Northern Pro-democracy activists had, some months ago, petitioned the International Criminal Court(ICC) in the Hague alleging that Buhari ‘s party was to be blamed for the 2011 post election violence.

The General had also been involved in a certificate saga, which remains unending despite spirited effort by the opposition party to keep it under the table.

The group had engaged a prosecutor, Mr. Goran Sluiter, a human rights lawyer who had filed a charge against the Buhari at the Hagues, while the NCDJ had also last week petitioned the United States Secretary of States, Senator John Kerry, asking the US to facilitate Buhari’s extradiction to the Hague for trial over the death of some 800 persons in the post election violence of 2011.

In the letter dated January 25, 2015 and titled: “The role of General Muhammadu Buhari in the 2011 post election violence in Nigeria,” which was signed by Dr. Ibrahim Baba , Secretary Research and Documentation, Mr. Yunana Shubkau, Publicity Secretary and Umar Farouk, Secretary General, the NCDJ said it had dragged General Buhari to the International Criminal Court but needed the backing of the US to have Buhari repatriated to the court.

The letter read in part: “Conducts of political actors particularly statements credited to General Buhari and others in the year 2012, 2013 and 2014 during the build up to the 2015 elections is in the context of politically motivated sectarian violence. And a threat to the conduct of peaceful, free, fair and transparent elections in Nigeria.

“Therefore as an integral part of the international community, the United States have an unambiguous obligation to facilitate the prosecution of individuals responsible for the 2011 post election violence recorded in Nigeria and to checkmate reoccurrence of the same dastardly act in 2015 during the general elections in Nigeria.

“Northern Coalition for Democracy and Justice instituted legal action for human rights violation against Gen. Muhammadu Buhari before the ICC at the Hague.

It is in view of the ample video, audio and documented evidence to support a prosecution against him at our disposal that we urge the United States Government to facilitate his hand over to the International Criminal Court as there is incontrovertible evidence against him which supercedes that of Mr. Laurent Bagbo of Ivory Coast and Uhuru Kenyata of Kenya

“As vanguards of accountability in our dear country, we shall continue to conscientise and mobilize the citizenry to resist all forms of intolerance in Nigeria.”