The Nigerian government has donated $1 million to the Turkish government over the devastating earthquake that hit Turkey about three weeks ago, Vanguard reports.
Vanguard claimed that a delegation of President Muhammadu Buhari-led by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mohammed Bello delivered the financial aid at the weekend.
Bello and other members of the team were received by the Turkish Foreign Affairs Minister, Ambassador Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in Ankara, the Turkish capital.
The country alongside its Asian neighbour, Syria was hit with a tragic 7.8-magnitude earthquake on February 6, which led to the death of about 50,000 people, including former Chelsea and Ghanaian midfielder, Christian Atsu
Bello noted that the President could not personally pay a condolence visit to Turkey due to the general elections slated for February 25.
The FCT minister conveyed Buhari’s heartfelt condolences on behalf of the government and people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to the government and people of Turkey over the tragic natural disaster.
The minister also handed over Buhari’s letter of condolence as well as a Central Bank of Nigeria Promissory Note of $1,000,000 for onward transmission to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
He said the token was a donation by the Government of Nigeria to support the ongoing humanitarian efforts in cushioning the effects of the tragic earthquake.
Meanwhile, the Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs in his remarks, explained that President Erdoğan was unable to personally receive the delegation due to the exigencies of directly overseeing humanitarian efforts in the 11 quake-hit southern provinces of Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, Sanliurfa, and Elazig.
The minister appreciated Buhari, the government and the people of Nigeria for their show of solidarity, and financial, as well as material support to the Republic of Turkey in difficult moments.
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He noted that the First Lady of Nigeria, Hajiya Aisha Buhari, had earlier donated 10,000 blankets on behalf of the African First Ladies Forum to the humanitarian efforts in the country.
Çavuşoğlu told the Nigerian delegation that as of February 23, 2023, no fewer than 43,000 persons had been confirmed dead while 14 million people were affected in 11 provinces of the country. He added that the government had resolved to embark on rebuilding new cities with all associated infrastructure in all the locations of the disaster.
The minister, while wishing Nigeria successful and peaceful general elections, reiterated that in compliance with the country’s constitution, the Government of Turkey was also committed to conducting its forthcoming general election scheduled to take place on June 18, 2023, despite the devastating effects of the earthquake.