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Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
Former president, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan declined comment on the outcome of his meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, yesterday.
A agenda of the meeting which lasted for barely 15 minutes, was unknown to newsmen.
Jonathan, who was escorted to his car by the State Chief of Protocal, Amb. Lawal Kazaure, only answered greetings from State House correspondents and other staff.
It was his first visit under the second term administration of President Buhari. During Buhari’s first term, he was at the Villa about twice for private visits.
Jonathan recently came under fire as ex-Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, David Cameron, claimed in his book that he (Jonathan) prevented UK troops from rescuing some of the 276 schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram from Chibok, Borno State.
Cameron, in his memoir: “For the Record” wrote that a team of UK soldiers had located some of the Chibok girls but “Nigeria’s President, Goodluck Jonathan, seemed to be asleep at the wheel.”
Jonathan fired back, claiming that Cameron was against him because he signed the Anti-Same sex Marriage Bill into law.
Meanwhile, Dr. Jonathan has been nominated by the African Union (AU) to lead the continental body’s election observation mission to Mozambique’s general elections scheduled for October 15.
He is billed to leave the country today for Maputo where he will oversee the deployment of the mission’s 40-member team of observers to different parts of the country.
A statement by Ikechukwu Eze said Jonathan would also hold consultations with various stakeholders in the country including government officials, members of the electoral commission, political parties, civil society, media, members of the diplomatic corps, and other international observer groups.
In a letter of invitation signed by the chairperson of the African Union Commission, Mr. Moussa Faki Mahamat, the AU described Jonathan as a man who is deeply committed to peace and democracy on the continent.
Since leaving office in 2015, Jonathan’s numerous international engagements and peace missions had involved leading different Election Observer Missions to various African nations including Tanzania, Zambia, Liberia, Sierra Leone and South Africa.
