Nigeria Says No to AFRICOM

PANA—Nigeria’s apex presidential advisory body, the National Council of State, has said it is opposed to the establishment in Nigeria or the W est African sub-region of a base of the US African Command (AFRICOM).

At a meeting in the capital city of Abuja Monday, the Council decided it would rather prefer the establishment of an African Standby Force for the continent.

“The Council of State was briefed on AFRICOM…, the President restated the positi on of Nigeria, that it is not permitting the establishment of a US Base in our country or the sub-region but to work towards establishment of African Standby Force,” said Bukola Saraki, Governor of central Kwara state, who briefed journalists after the meeting.

The Council comprises of the President, Vice President, Senate President, Speake r of the House of Representatives, serving and former Chief Justices of the Federation, former Presidents and all the Governors of the country’s 36 States.

AFRICOM, currently based in Stuttgart, Germany, formally took off 1 Oct. 2007

US officials have consistently denied the establishment of the command was aimed at setting up bases across Africa to give the US a foothold on the continent, especially in trouble spots like Nigeria’s oil-producing Niger Delta region.

They said the command would seek to work closely with the African Union, with regional African institutions, and with individual nations, rather than take a leadership role on the continent.

<< Back to main