Foreign affairs Minister defends Buhari over Islamisation claims

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama

The Federal Government says Nigeria’s membership of the Islamic coalition against terror, spearheaded by Saudi Arabia, has nothing to do with religion.
Foreign Affairs Minister Geoffrey Onyama, in an interview with State House correspondents yesterday, clarified media reports quoting President Muhammadu Buhari as disclosing that Nigeria had joined the coalition.

Onyama said while Islamic nations were uncomfortable with the perception that terrorism was Islamic, the coalition was aimed at proving that terrorists were not representing Islam.
The minister described terrorism as a global phenomenon, saying Nigeria was ready to support any move to tackle it. 
He stated: “What I say first of all is that you guys in the media have to be more responsible in the way you present news. First and foremost, get your facts right. It has nothing to do with religion as far as Nigeria is concerned. We’ve to look at what the objective is. We face terror challenges and it’s a global phenomenon.
“Unfortunately, the problem we’ve today is that some of the terrorists groups are claiming some of the things they are doing is in the name of a particular religion and it is clear to everybody that this is not the case which is obviously a concern to people of Islamic faith and Islamic countries that their religion should be so abused.
“So, there is naturally a tendency to show that this has nothing to do with Islam. Terrorism has nothing to do with Islam. Islamic countries, Islamic people want to be seen as being in the forefront of the battle against these terrorists to show also that it has absolutely nothing to do with religion,” he said.

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