‘Nigeria to sustain relationship with Saudi Arabia’

The Senior Special Assistant to President Goodluck Jonathan on Islamic Affairs, Alhaji Tahir Umar, said on Wednesday that Nigeria would sustain its existing ties with Saudi Arabia.
Umar, who made the promise in Abuja during a visit to the embassy of Saudi Arabia, said that he undertook the visit on the directive of President Jonathan.
He said there was no better time than now to convey the president’s message to the Saudi representative in Nigeria.
Umar described Nigeria’s relations with Saudi Arabia as cordial, and promised that the ties would be sustained.
He described Saudi Arabia as very strategic in the area of Islamic affairs and education, saying that it was always ready to defend the interests of Islam in the world.
The aide also described Jonathan as a peace loving person “who is ever ready to do anything within his powers to promote peace in the country.”
“This is the more reason he created the Office of the Senior Special Assistant on Islamic Affairs with a view to advising him on such issues,” the News Agency of Nigeria quoted the presidential aide as saying during the visit.
Umar said the anti-gay law recently signed by the President was a pointer to his commitment to the development of Nigeria.