Why Nigeria’s western allies must designate IPOB terror group — Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has given reasons why Nigeria’s western allies must designate the Indigenous People of Biafra as a terror group.

Buhari, in an interview with Bloomberg, also spoke on Boko Haram and the Islamic State of West Africa Province.

He said: “In 2015, Boko Haram held territory the size of Belgium within the borders of Nigeria.

“Today, they are close to extinction as a military force.

“The leader of ISWAP was eliminated by a Nigerian Airforce airstrike in March.

“The jets acquired from the US and intelligence shared by British were not provided to previous administrations and stand as testament to renewed trust re-built between Nigeria and our traditional western allies under my government.

“We urge those same international partners to take additional steps costing them nothing, by proscribing another group – IPOB – as a terrorist organisation.

“Their leadership enjoys safe haven in the West, broadcasting hate speech into Nigeria from London, spending millions lobbying members of the US Congress, and freely using international financial networks to arm agitators on the ground.

“This must stop.

“My administration is the only in Nigeria’s history to implement a solution to decades-long herder-farmer conflicts, exacerbated by desertification and demographic growth.

“The National Livestock Transformation Plan, putting ranching at its core, is the only way to deplete the competition for resources at the core of the clashes.

“Governors from some individual states have sought to play politics where ranches have been established; but where they have been disputes have dramatically reduced.”

Asked if he was concerned that people accused of blasphemy still get stoned to death on the streets in northern Nigeria, Buhari said: “No person has the right to take the law into his or her own hands.

“Christianity and Islam, our two great faiths and their great books have far more in common than they have apart.

“Nigeria has a long tradition of tolerance that we must draw on, and we must strive to find common ground.

“What comes out of this tragedy is to cherish what we share, while at the same time respect our differences.”