We can’t stop foreigners from attending Buhari’s campaign – Ribadu

Former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Malam Nuhu Ribadu, says no foreigner willing to attend the campaign of President Muhammadu Buhari can be stopped because they enjoy the freedom of movement.

Ribadu said this on Friday while fielding questions from journalists at a train-the-trainer programme of the Field Operations Directorate of the APC Presidential Campaign Council.

Governor Issa Moussa of Zinder and Maradi State Governor, Zakiri Umar, both from the Republic of Niger, were on Thursday in Kano to rally support for President Buhari’s re-election.

The former governorship aspirant, who is the Director, APC Presidential Campaign Council field operations, said the foreigners were constitutionally allowed to enter the country.

Asked about his take on the presence of two governors from the Niger Republic at Buhari’s campaign in Kano, he said, “For your information, it is a free world and it is the constitutional right of everyone to be where he wants to be. You have no right to curtail anybody from doing what he wants to do. People from West Africa are free to move into Nigeria. We have a protocol or agreement that they don’t need a visa to come into this country.

“I know for sure that they don’t have the vote but as a free West African who believe that someone has done extremely very well, and decided to identify himself with what he believes in, I don’t think there is anything wrong and I don’t think there is any crime committed. You cannot and you have no right as a Nigerian to stop them from exercising their fundamental right to identify with his friends.

“Their presence may or may not half any impact on the re-election but they are entitled to it. We have to guarantee their freedom because their presence is within the law and we don’t have the right to stop them.”

On the training organised for the votes canvassers, Ribadu expressed optimism that President Buhari would win the coming presidential election and urged them to work in unity to rescue Nigeria from those coming to sell national assets.

He said, “We have to join hands together to rescue this nation, we don’t want things to go bad like they were before. We don’t want anyone to steal from our own common again. We don’t want anyone to come and sell some things that belong to all of us to his own few friends. We want justice and fairness, we want to show that nobody is above the law in our own country.

“You (the canvassers) are believers. You people make this sacrifice as volunteers that have agreed to come collectively to improve ourselves and go to the field. We intend to go to every single door, every single house, every single armlet, you are going to train others who are also going to carry out this responsibility.

“I know that we are prepared and we have the best people that are going to do the work for us. We are not rich but we will deliver Muhammadu Buhari insha Allah.”

The training was attended by former governor of Osun state, Rauf Aregbesola, APC Deputy National Chairman (North), Senator Lawal Shuaibu, and APC Deputy Director General, Waziri Bulama, among others.