Search
  1. Home
  2. West Africa
  3. Nigeria
  • News

Canadian prime minister arrives for two-day visit

    ABIDJAN

    Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien arrived in Abuja on Tuesday for a two-visit during which he will hold talks with President Obasanjo, a news source in Lagos told IRIN.

    Chretien is due to speak to a joint session of the national assembly on Wednesday, but this is uncertain because the House of Representatives has threatened to boycott any joint sitting chaired by Senate President Evan Enwerem.

    The lower house is calling for Enwerem to resign, accusing him of having lied about his age and academic qualifications while seeking election as speaker.

    The news source told IRIN the presidency planned to cancel Chretien’s speech to the assembly, which would be the first by a foreign leader, if the lower house maintained its boycott.

    Chretien was also scheduled to inaugurate a new Canadian High Commission building in Abuja. A Canadian Embassy official in Abidjan said he would leave on Wednesday for South Africa to attend the 12-15 November Commonwealth heads of government meeting in Durban.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

    Share this article

    Our ability to deliver compelling, field-based reporting on humanitarian crises rests on a few key principles: deep expertise, an unwavering commitment to amplifying affected voices, and a belief in the power of independent journalism to drive real change.

    We need your help to sustain and expand our work. Your donation will support our unique approach to journalism, helping fund everything from field-based investigations to the innovative storytelling that ensures marginalised voices are heard.

    Please consider joining our membership programme. Together, we can continue to make a meaningful impact on how the world responds to crises.

    Become a member of The New Humanitarian

    Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

    Join