Gumi: Wike explains meeting with Israeli Ambassador 

 

Gumi: Wike explains meeting with Israeli Ambassador 

 

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has explained the meeting he held with the  Israeli ambassador to Nigeria, Michael Freeman which has generated controversy.

 

Wike, had on October 4, held a meeting  with the Israeli Ambassador to Nigeria, Michael Freeman, in his office in Abuja, three days before the ruling Hamas in Gaza killed at least 1,000 Israelis and abducted hundreds of others. In response, Israel has been punishing Gaza with relentless airstrikes that have led to the death of almost 5,000 Palestinians. 

 

PoliticsNow reported that after the Hama-Gaza war broke out, controversial Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmed Gumi, demanded the sack of Wike over the meeting with Israeli Ambassador. 

 

But in a reaction, the minister said he had no constitutional powers to determine Nigeria’s diplomatic relations with other countries, as such powers lay absolutely with the President and Commander-in-Chief.

 

“I have heard from various social media platforms that we had a meeting, that we are doing this and that with Israel. I am here acting on delegation of powers on behalf of Mr. President,” Wike announced.

 

“I cannot determine a relationship between a country and another country. So, it is difficult for anybody to say I am doing this, I am doing that.

 

“Any foreign body that wants to have anything to do with Nigeria, it is the Minister of Foreign Affairs who will write to me and state that these people want to see me; it is simple. And when they come, it is in my position to say look, we want to partner with you. Take for instance you are going into agriculture and we want to partner, then we tell you where exactly,” he explained.

 

The minister further clarified that his meeting with the Israeli Ambassador was for agricultural partnership in the interest of farmers in the FCT.

 

“In Abuja here, most of them have cultural farms and we say look, it is our own desire to help anybody who wants to invest in Abuja particularly in agriculture in order to employ our people and in order to get more revenue. It has nothing to do with another country. It doesn’t work that way.

 

“When our people begin to now think different angles and people may not understand that it is not correct. So I will like to use this opportunity to say look we have to talk to our people. In fact we must live harmoniously. We must live together to make sure that development is promoted”, Wike stated.