Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was a cynosure of all eyes in the early hours of Wednesday (7:55 pm New York time) as he addressed the world leaders for the first time at the ongoing United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
Clad in purple native attire and his signature infinity cap, President Tinubu’s 1544 text-long speech touched on myriads of internal and external affairs, including democratic governance, security and economic challenges, among others, but failed to touch on the plight of the Palestinians, a departure from Nigeria’s yearly tradition at the General Assembly.
Muslim News findings revealed that this is the first time in eight years that Nigeria, a regional power in Africa and an emerging power in international affairs will be silent on such a crucial matter of Palestine, especially at a time when the Israeli occupation soldiers invaded Aqsa Mosque last Sunday and attacked innocent Palestinian worshippers.
For eight consecutive years of former President Muhammadu Buhari, a chieftain of the same ruling party, Nigeria was reputed in the international community for her solidarity with Palestine and during many of her speeches at the UNGA, advocated for a two-state solution to the Palestine/Israel crisis.
This, Muslim News gathered, has been the position of most emerging powers – Turkiye, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Brazil, among others.
The former President Buhari first made a case for the Palestinian people at the United Nations (UN) Summit on Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform which was used to mark its 70th anniversary. It was held from 25th to 27th September 2015 in New York.
In February 2016 during his official visit with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, the Emir of Qatar in Doha, Qatar, the former Nigerian leader identified with Palestine’s quest for statehood.
Later in September 2016 at the #UNGA71 Meeting, Buhari reiterated a two-state solution with Palestinian rights to statehood, in conformity with numerous security council resolutions, beginning with Resolution 242 of 1967.
Muslim News gathered that the former president continued to be a voice for the voiceless Palestinians at UN until he left office on May 29, 2023.
But today (Wednesday) at the General Assembly holding in the New York, Buhari’s successor, President Tinubu failed to address the Palestine-Israel crisis in his speech, even as he offered his nation’s support to Morocco and Libya over grave loss of lives due to devastating earthquake and flood.
“As I lament deaths at home, I also lament the grave loss of lives in Morocco and Libya. The Nigerian people are with you”, he said.
Many analysts, Muslim leaders and human rights activists have, however, described President Tinubu’s uncanny silence on Palestine at UNGA as a misadventure in international diplomacy and a clear departure from Nigeria’s foreign policy.
Tinubu’s silence on Palestine not surprising, says ace broadcaster
Ace broadcaster and the former Director, Public Affairs, with Voice of Nigeria, VON, Alhaji AbdurRazaq AbdusSalam, in his reaction, said it was not surprising that President Tinubu didn’t address Palestine during his first outing, saying that he has limited knowledge about Palestinian affairs.
According to Alhaji Abdusalam, famously known as Abu Umar Al-Faruq, “Leaders are products of the institutions they attend. They’re also products of their ideals and the ideas they hold. The reality is that our president is a good politician but has limited knowledge when it comes to international issues. That’s not his field. More so, discussion on Palestine isn’t something on his front burner.”
He said, “Before now, he has never been exposed to the issue around Palestine, Al-Aqsa, among others. No Muslim group or individual has gone to greet him and speak to him on Palestinian issues. Our president doesn’t even know some common issues about Islam. He’s not schooled in the ideology of Islam, so it’s quite unfair to expect him to do what former President Buhari did at UNGA during his administration.
The author of “Palestine: Why Our Heart Bleeds” also faulted the president’s speech writers and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who he said could have been well-informed about Nigeria’s years of advocacy for Palestine’s statehood, and guided the president in the right direction.
He said, “It’s also a function of the speech writers around him. How effective are they? What do they even know about the yearning of the Muslims. It’s also an issue because in most cases the president does not write his speech himself. If he has an idea, he gives it to them, then they write it. So, if the speech writers are not conscious of the issues of Palestine, there’s no way they’d put it in the speech.
Speaking further, Abu Umar Al-Faruq, said, “When I looked at all these areas, I realised that it’s going to be a miracle to expect President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to focus on the issue of Palestine at UNGA 78. If the Palestine issue, for instance, is in his speech and a journalist asks him about it, he won’t be able to defend what he has said because he has limited knowledge about Palestinian affairs. That’s the fact.”
Jonathan abstains from voting for Palestine
Abu Umar Al-Faruq, the first Amir of The Muslim Congress, TMC, recalled that a similar incident happened with former President Goodluck Jonathan, when in December 2014, Nigeria abstained from voting in favour of a motion seeking recognition for an independent Palestinian State at the UN Security Council.
“That year, Jonathan’s ambassador didn’t vote for Palestine. A “yes” vote by Nigeria would have paved the way to compel Israel to end its occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, which dates back to 1967. Sadly, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu later thanked Jonathan and the rest they say is history, until President Buhari came on board and started speaking about Palestine at any given opportunity. Read more HERE
UNGA 78: US influence might have contributed to Tinubu’s silence on Palestine – Sheik Mujahid
Also speaking, the National Coordinator of Jama’atul Tajdidil Islamiy, Sheikh Abubakar Mujahid said it’s disheartening for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu not to have raised the oppression done by the Jews to the Palestinians at the gathering of the world leaders.
Speaking with Muslim News, Sheikh Mujahid, a Senior Lecturer at Nuhu Bamali Polytechnic, Zaria, Kaduna State, described it as an unworthy omission.
He noted that the Nigerian foreign policy from time immemorial, particularly during the regime of Generals Yakubu Gowon and late Murtala Muhammad has been championing the cause of the oppressed people in Africa and the world.
According to him, “Nigeria spearheaded the independence of Namibia, Zimbabwe, among others, and it has been the bedrock of the foreign policy of Nigeria to always speak against oppression anywhere in the world. Hence, it’s disheartening for the president not to mention the oppression done by the Jews to Palestinians.
“As we are speaking, the Jews are bombing the Palestinians in Gaza and West Bank with no reason. The Palestinians have become a political tool in the hands of Benjamin Netanyahu and others. If they want to score a political victory, they start by just attacking Muslims or going to Al-Aqsa mosque to harass worshippers, among others. In exchange, the Israelis will rather support the inhuman policies of the government.
“It’s disheartening to see this from a person who the Muslims united to bring to power. Muslims, especially from the northern part of the country had to disown their brother, a tribesman, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar to vote for him because some non-Muslims were against him, because he is a Muslim and an advocate of the Muslim-Muslim ticket.
“If not for that, he wouldn’t have had a chance. But his policies are now going against him and the interest of oppressed Muslims and non-Muslims in Palestine. I call on President Tinubu to critically look into his foreign policy, especially as it relates to Palestine and come up with a new statement on the Palestinian issue in conformity with what has been in existence.
“After all, he said he’s going to continue from where Buhari stopped. If it was another political party, we’d have said that it’s the policy of the party to support oppression. But this is the policy of the person you took over power from and you promised to continue from where he stopped and now you’re departing.” Read more HERE
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