Saraki seeks foreign assistance to rebuild North- East

SENATE President, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki, on
Wednesday, solicited the assistance of the
International Community for the ongoing efforts by
the Federal Government to end the insurgency in
the North Eastern part of the country and thereafter
rebuild the area as well as rehabilitate the people.
He said that such support would also help bring
succour to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)
in the area.
Saraki made the call at separate sessions he had
with the German Ambassador to Nigeria, Michael
Zenner and his Spanish counterpart, Alfonso
Barnudvo Sdbastian De Erice, who paid courtesy
visits to him in Abuja.
He stated that the humanitarian situation and level
of destruction in the area ravaged by the
insurgents required urgent and wide support
across the world.
He said it was clear to him, having led a
delegation of the Senate to visit the IDPs camps in
Maiduguri on Monday for an on-the-spot
assessment, that the Federal Government alone
cannot foot the bills for total rehabilitation of the
people and rebuilding of infrastructure damaged.
Saraki said “As you talked about insecurity,
particularly the insurgency in the North-East, it is a
problem that we alone cannot tackle. A couple of
days ago, some of us were there in the North-East,
in Borno State, to see the effects on the entire
community particularly the Internally Displaced
Persons, I think that it is clear that a large part of
the North-East need reconstruction and
rehabilitation and I think this is an area where long
term funding will play a role.
“Those places needed to be rebuilt. There are no
schools. There are no roads. The houses have
been destroyed and I think that the international
community can assist us by providing funding that
will allow us to begin the rehabilitation and
reconstruction.”
of these areas.
The Senate President told his guests that apart
from insecurity, the nation is looking up to
developed economies like Germany and Spain in
the other sectors such as agriculture, mining,
health and industrialisation in order to bring the
dividends of democracy to the populace.
Saraki assured his visitors of the commitment of
the 8th Senate to work closely with every
stakeholder in diversifying the economy.
In their separate remarks, the German
Ambassador, Mr Zenner and his Spanish
counterpart, De Erice, commended the Nigerian
Senate for putting behind the earlier crisis that
bedevilled its take off, adding that they will not
relent in working closely with the 8th Senate and
the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration
in achieving social, political and economic stability.