It was nothing short of a melodrama at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, yesterday, between State House correspondents and the Federal Government over the many foreign trips of President Muhammadu Buhari during a press briefing.
Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information, who justified the trips, said they were necessary to bring the country back on the track of development and growth.
According to him, Nigeria was a pariah state under former President Goodluck Jonathan.
He said that under Jonathan’s watch, corruption permeated the country, such that foreign investors deserted it.
He stated that it was necessary to tell Nigerians that the trips had started paying off since investors’ confidence in the country had been restored.
Mohammed spoke during a press briefing at the end of the Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting in Abuja.
He said: “You do not run a country by being isolated. The personal presence of Mr. President in many of these fora is important because before now, we were almost a pariah state. And the issues that have been driving investments away from this country are terrorism and corruption.
“One thing that nobody can fault this President for is his determination and strength of purpose in resolving these matters. “Mr. President’s presence in many of these fora is highly crucial even in fixing our economy back at home.”
Mohammed’s counterpart in Environment, Amina Mohammed, corroborated the position, saying the President needed not to run the country by staying at home, especially when he had a deputy and a cabinet of ministers to look after home affairs.