In most situations, sober reflection and assessment of events are best done with a modest passage of time.
Besides all the hurried commentaries on the visit, I think now is an appropriate time to reflect; for, as perfectly stated by Margaret J. Wheatley “Without reflection, we go blindly on our way, creating more unintended consequences, and failing to achieve anything useful.”
Accordingly, it’s now almost one month since Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari visited President Barack Obama in Washington DC to discuss security and anti-corruption issues and a good time to offer sober and long range perspectives on it.
I’ll begin by noting, philosophically, that most Nigerians agree with me that President Buhari brings HOPE rather than CHANGE.
Somehow, there were too many missed opportunities in the course of the trip. I’ll cite a very glaring and embarrassing example. U.S diplomacy is based on interpersonal diplomacy and its democracy anchored on Capitol Hill but curiously even with a scheduled visit to the U.S Committee on International Relations at the U.S Congress since Buhari did not allow any one, NO Nigerian legislator was in the entourage or at the meeting!
My candid opinion is that we did not leverage on the opportunity the trip presented, more so at the time of great security and economic challenges of which the USA will most definitely be the key resource for Nigeria and indeed the Buhari presidency..
The seriousness attached to the visit by the host was not reciprocated by Nigeria’s inadequate presence — from the planning to the execution! Otherwise, a better and properly negotiated date would have been desirable to allow key members of the U.S Congress to be available to receive and engage our dear President.
From the reports of the meetings they were not productive and far reaching as our delegation was either starstruck or ill prepared and lack capacity for such level of engagement. Take for instance the reported team that was with President Buhari to engage VP Biden or the team for the security meeting with joint chief of staff and deputy secretary of defense. Same for the team that engaged the very first black female attorney general Ms. Lynch on tackling corruption. Ditto for the team that parlayed with Penny Priztker on commerce.
Without mincing word, Nigeria’s Buhari delegation didn’t put our good foot forward talk less of better or the best foot forward. We could have done much much better.
Please Mr. President have your office provide you the manual for the presidential visit by President Goodluck Jonathan to Turkey, rated among the most successful state visits in recent times.
Our President of hope (Buhari) must be told that his level of dissatisfaction and anguish on the state of Nigeria requires that he needs to search sometimes outside his immediate network and his political family of APC for Nigerians with aligned capacity, commitment and conscience to deliver change.
Written by Fidelis Anosike, Founder, Folio Media Group.
fidelisanosike@gmail.com
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