Arewa Think Tank blames ‘fifth columnists’ for Canada’s visa denial to Defence chief 

MaTaZ ArIsInG
Dallas, Texas

The Arewa Think Tank (ATT) has alleged that the recent denial of visas to Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, and other senior military officers by Canada was orchestrated by fifth columnists within the corridors of power, aiming to embarrass President Bola Tinubu’s administration. 

In a strong condemnation of the Canadian government’s decision, ATT criticized the visa rejection, which prevented some senior military officials from attending an event in Canada honouring war veterans. While part of the delegation was granted visas, the exclusion of key officials sparked a backlash from Nigerian authorities. 

In a statement on Friday, ATT Chief Convener, Muhammad Alhaji Yakubu, recalled that his group had previously warned President Tinubu in 2023 about the presence of fifth columnists within his government, urging vigilance against internal saboteurs.

“After we warned President Tinubu about fifth columnists, some classified memos at the Presidency were leaked to the public mid-November 2023 to embarrass the government.

“Also the fifth columnists had in November 2023 come down heavily on Tinubu that his trip to Saudi Arabia at that time was a jamboree, short of any economic benefit for Nigeria.

“The recent refusal of Canada to approve Visas for our top military officers, to say the least, is most embarrassing to Nigeria as a nation.

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“We therefore request the Presidency to embark on an investigation into the civil service framework to eliminate individuals referred to as “moles” who are loyal to opposition parties in the country.Related News

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“This fifth columnist is within Nigeria, so Tinubu should probe deeper to ensure that the fifth columnists do not embarrass his government at any of the international visits again,” Yakubu said.

“We view the Canada Visa denial as embarrassing and disrespectful to Nigeria as a nation, but this should not deter Nigeria from asserting itself on the global stage and should not be taken for granted.

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“We can imagine the sour experience of our top military officers and the situation they found themselves so disappointed in, however, it is a reminder for Nigeria to strengthen its independence and resilience as a united nation.

“However, it’s a clear reminder that the country must stand on its own, stand strong as a nation, and should no longer be taken for granted, but to reinforce the importance of making Nigeria self-sufficient, as the incident is a motivation to work towards national progress.

“We want to commend General Musa for his leadership in tackling security challenges and also thank him for having the courage to say Canada denied him and others Visas.  And this is another reason we must work hard to make Nigeria thrive. We commend you for providing purposeful leadership in the fight against insecurity in the country.

“We want to believe that the Visa denial may have exposed Canada’s stance on Nigerian military officials and its wider diplomatic relationship with Nigeria because the specific reasons for the refusal of Visa remain not too clear for now.

“The Canada Visa denial incident has highlighted the bureaucratic and political hurdles Nigerian officials face in international engagements most of the time. Therefore, we say enough is enough in this regard,” The statement said.

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