What Buhari Said When Trump Accused Him Of Killing Christians

• First republic politicians are the best – Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has disclosed his response to President Donald Trump over the American leader’s allegation that is administration sanctioned the killing of Christians.

Buhari had met with Trump in Washington on April 30, 2018, to discuss the fight against insurgency, economic growth, and other issues.

Buhari said he told his American counterpart that the problem between herders and farmers is not religious but cultural.

Buhari made the revelation In his closing remarks at the end of the two-day ministerial performance review retreat at the presidential villa, Abuja,

“I believe I was about the only African among the less developed countries, the President of United States invited, and when I was in his office only myself and himself, only God is my witness, he looked at me in the face, he said ‘why are you killing Christians?’” Buhari said.

“I wonder if you were the person how you will react. I hope what I was feeling inside did not betray my emotion.

“So, I told him that the problem between the cattle rearers and stagnant farmers I know is older than me not to talk of him (Trump). I think I am a couple of years older than him.

“With climate change and population growth and the culture of the cattle rearers, if you have 50 cows and they eat grass, any root to your water point, they will follow it, it doesn’t matter whose farm it was.”

He extolled the first republic leadership for their vision, competence and foresight.

He said they were of the best, accusing subsequent administrations of encroaching on cattle routes.

“The first republic set of leadership was the most responsible leadership we ever had. I asked the Minister of Agriculture to get a gazette of the early 60s which delineated the cattle routes where they used meagre resources then to put earth dams, wind mills even sanitary department,” he said.

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“So, any cattle rearer that allowed his cattle to go to somebody’s farm is arrested, taken before the court, the farmer is called to submit his bill and if he can’t pay, the cattle are sold, but subsequent leaders, VVIPs (very very important persons) they encroached on the cattle routes, they took over the cattle rearing areas.

“So, I tried and explained to him, this has got nothing to do with ethnicity or religion. It is a cultural thing which the respective leadership was failing the nation.”