President Olusegun Obasanjo said yesterday at the Hague, the Netherlands, that Nigeria preferred dialogue to repudiation in the ongoing effort at finding a solution to its debt crisis.

Speaking at a joint news conference with his host, Mr. Jan Peters, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, President Obasanjo said “the way to go on the debt issue is the way of discussions, dialogue and actin bilaterally with the international community.”

He told his audience that he too was “virtually surprised and ambushed” by members of the National Assembly when they canvassed for debt repudiation.

He, however, reiterated that Nigeria too deserved debt relief. The president was responding to a question from a Dutch journalist who wanted to know Nigeria’s position on the debt repayment issue following recent development from the Group of Eight Industrialised nations (G-8).

Recently, the G-8 had approved debt relief for 18 highly indebted and poor countries for which the African Union (AU) chairman said Africa was grateful. AU and European Union (EU) on the evictions in Zimbabwe, Obasanjo said that there was no such gap “because the AU is yet to be briefed.”

“We’ve asked for details on the issue and I will be briefed by both the government and the opposition group,” he said, adding that it was only after the briefing that the AU would comment.

“If something is wrong, it is wrong, either in the European or African eye,” he said, adding “a considered position will be known after hearing from both sides.”

The president said that among the issues he discussed with his host was “what can be done for Nigeria as a country that has tremendous responsibility to its people, to the West Africa sub-region and Africa.”

He also briefed the Prime Minister on the general situation in Nigeria, the West African sub-region and crisis spots on the continent and efforts by the AU towards’ resolving such crises.

Patrick Odey, Daily Champion (Lagos), June 29, 2005