This was contained in a statement issued on April 1 by the special adviser to the president on media and publicity, Femi Adesina, a copy obtained by Naij.com. The president, who spoke in Washington DC during Nigeria’s submission at the 4th nuclear security summit being hosted by President Barack Obama, pledged Nigeria’s continued support for all multilateral efforts aimed at promoting a common approach and commitment to nuclear security at the highest levels.
“Nigeria accords high priority to all global efforts towards ending the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery, including nuclear weapons. “Nuclear terrorism is one of the greatest threats to international security and preventing nuclear terrorism and all forms of terrorism around the globe is of concern to all of us.
“To this end, Nigeria has strengthened the legal framework for fighting terrorism through the adoption in 2013 of an amendment to its Terrorism (Prevention) Act, ensuring the implementation of more robust counter-terrorism measures in the country,” Buhari said.
Buhari asserted that to improve nuclear security, the federal government has reinforced its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United States Department of State’s Partnership for Nuclear Security and the World Institute for Nuclear Security.
“In addition, Nigeria has signed an agreement of cooperation with the United States Department of Energy’s Office of Radiological Security to protect nuclear and other radiological materials from theft or sabotage.
“Nigeria also intends to strengthen its partnerships with relevant international organizations to promote capacity building, particularly in the development of the Nigerian Nuclear Security Support Centre, Physical Security Upgrades and Human Reliability Programmes Implementation,” Buhari said.
The president added that Nigeria had also developed a programme to ensure that radioactive sources in the country are better secured to prevent unauthorised access by terrorists and criminals. Buhari lauded President Obama’s “pace setting initiative and drive,” which he said, has brought the global fight against the threat of nuclear terrorism to its present level.
Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti state has called on well-meaning Nigerians to prevail on President Buhari to stop his needless foreign trips, describing the president’s trip to the United States of America on Wednesday for the 4th nuclear security summit while Nigerians are suffering at home as “joke of the year.”
“It remains a mystery what President Buhari that met power generation at 6,000MW and could not manage it such that power generation crumbled to Zero Megawatt yesterday, will contribute to the Nuclear Energy Summit in America,” Fayose said..