Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has alleged that
President Muhammadu Buhari was barred from the United States for 15 years due
to his religious views.
Atiku was quoted as saying this during an interview with
Dele Momodu, which was part of his weekly column titled, ‘Pendulum’, published
in The Boss Magazine.
Buhari had, at a seminar organised by the Supreme Council
for Sharia in Nigeria in August 2001, said, “God willing, we will not stop the
agitation for the total implementation of the Sharia in the country. I will
continue to show openly and inside me, the total commitment to the Sharia
movement that is sweeping all over Nigeria.”
Atiku, who was one of the notable voices that opposed Buhari
at the time, said Buhari was actually barred from travelling to the US for 15
years as a result of his position on the Sharia issue.
The former vice-president was responding to a question on
why he avoided travelling to the US.
Atiku stated, “It is the sole prerogative of America to
determine who they want in their country or not. I’m not running away from
America. I applied but wasn’t issued a visa. However, they did not decline me
categorically.
“They’ve only said my application is going through an
administrative process. This is not peculiar to me. For about 15 years, Buhari
could not enter America on account of religious considerations.
“The current Indian Prime Minister, Modi, suffered the same
fate for years. Today, he is being accorded a red carpet treatment in America.
I fly to different parts of the world, including Europe. If America wanted me,
it would be so easy for them to reach out to their allies…”
I will defeat Buhari in 2019, says Atiku
Also, Atiku, who recently resigned as a member of the All
Progressives Congress, boasted that he would defeat Buhari should the latter
contest against him in the 2019 presidential election.
He said there currently existed in the country a widespread
disenchantment with the Buhari government and that he (Atiku) would defeat him
in the election.
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