Real reason I ordered for borders’ closure-President Buhari

President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari has given real reason he ordered the closure of the country’s borders against West African neighbours.

He said the closure was only about rice smuggling, but also because arms and ammunition, as well as hard drugs were being transported into Nigeria.

Holding a two-sided meeting on Monday in London at the side-lines of UK-Africa Investment Summit 2020 with President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana, Buhari said he could not watch youths being destroyed through cheap hard drugs, and compromised security caused by uncontrolled inflow of small arms.

“When most of the vehicles carrying rice and other food products through our land borders are intercepted, you find cheap hard drugs, and small arms, under the food products. This has terrible consequences for any country,” President Buhari said.

He said it was regrettable that the partial border closure was having “negative economic impact on our neighbours,” but added that “we cannot leave our country, particularly the youths, endangered.”

The Nigerian leader said the Sahel region was packed with small arms, which accounts for severe security challenges in Mali, Chad, Burkina Faso, Niger and Nigeria.

He lamented that: “We are in fact the biggest victims.”

Speaking on reopening the borders, President Buhari said it would not happen till the final report of a committee set up on the matter was submitted and considered.

“We will get things sorted out. Our farmers, especially those who grow rice, now have a market, and are happy, and we are also concerned about hard drugs and weapons. Once the committee comes up with its recommendations, we will sit and consider them,” President Buhari said.

Showing understanding of the need for Nigeria to protect her citizens, President Akufo-Addo, pleaded for “an expedited process, because the Nigerian market is significant for certain categories of business people in Ghana.”