Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president of Nigeria, has congratulated Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on her appointment as the director-general of World Trade Organisation (WTO).
In a statement he personally signed, Atiku said: “Dr (Mrs) Ngozi Okonjo Iweala is a woman I know very well, because we worked at close quarters between 2003 and 2007, when she served in our administration in various capacities, most notably as Finance Minister.”
Atiku, who was the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2019 general election, further said: “It is not hyperbole when I say that no one could be more qualified for the job of Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) than Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, and I congratulate her for her success at being the first female and African DG of the WTO.
“Okonjo Iweala is an apostle of free trade and an astute manager of people and resources, and the world will be a much more prosperous place by her elevation to this enviable height.”
Elated Atiku strongly believes that “As the world prepares to emerge from the global pandemic of COVID-19, the planet needs a steady hand at the wheel, to drive global trade, and rebuild from the devastation wrought by the virus. We would not need someone who thinks they can pull this off. We would need someone who has actually and serially pulled it off before. And that person has emerged.”
“Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, Africa and Nigeria are proud of you and my family and I are full of joy at your victory. Go to Geneva and make us proud, as we know you will,” he said.
Credit: Business Day