₦airaland Forum

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaYQm1AtQ0E

THE NATIONAL STATEMENT OF HIS EXCELLENCY, PRESIDENT BOLA AHMED TINUBU GCFR, @officialABAT

DELIVERED BY

HIS EXCELLENCY, KASHIM SHETTIMA, GCON, @officialSKSM VICE-PRESIDENT, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA,

DURING THE GENERAL DEBATE OF THE 80TH SESSION OF THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY, NEW YORK #UNGA80

THEME: BETTER TOGETHER: 80 YEARS AND MORE FOR PEACE, DEVELOPMENT, AND HUMAN RIGHTS

24th SEPTEMBER 2025

Madam President,
Mr. Secretary-General,
Excellencies, Heads of State and Government,
Distinguished Delegates,

The chaos that shadows our world is a reminder that we cannot afford the luxury of inaction. We would have been consumed by our differences had there been no community such as this to remind us that we are one human family. Even in our darkest hours, we have refused to be broken. This community was born from the ashes of despair, a vehicle for order and for the shared assurance that we could not afford to falter again. Our belief in this community is not a posture of moral superiority but an undying faith in the redemption of humanity. It is, therefore, with profound humility that I stand before you today, as Vice-President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, to renew this pledge on behalf of my country.

Madam President,

1.Nigeria joins the comity of nations in congratulating you on your election as President of the General Assembly for the 80th Session and assures you of our unalloyed support during your tenure. I commend your predecessor, my brother, His Excellency, Philémon Yang, and the Secretary-General, His Excellency, António Guterres, for the outstanding stewardship and unifying leadership during these extraordinary times.

2.This anniversary must not be a sentimental retreat into nostalgia. It must be a moment of truth, a pause to measure where we have stumbled and how we might have done better in turning our values into action that meets the demands of today. We are here to deliver a world of peace and development, where the respect for human rights is paramount. We must recalibrate the delicate balance between our roles as sovereign governments and our duties as collective partners, to renew multilateralism in a world that has evolved far beyond what it was in 1945.

3.The pace of change across borders is a force without pause. It manifests in the tools of technology, in the movements of information and finance, in the corrosive ideologies that preach violence and division, in the gathering storm of the climate emergency, and in the tide of irregular migration. We must own this process of change. When we speak of nuclear disarmament, the proliferation of small weapons, Security Council reform, fair access to trade and finance, and the conflicts and human suffering across the world, we must recognize the truth. These are stains on our collective humanity.

4.For all our careful diplomatic language, the slow pace of progress on these hardy perennials of the UN General Assembly debate has led some to look away from the multilateral model. Some years ago, I noticed a shift at this gathering: key events were beginning to take place outside this hall, and the most sought-after voices were no longer heads of state. These are troubling signs. Nigeria remains firmly convinced of the merits of multilateralism, but to sustain that conviction, we must show that existing structures are not set in stone. We must make real change, change that works, and change that is seen to work. If we fail, the direction of travel is already predictable.

5.We are here to strengthen the prospects for peace, development and human rights. Madam President, I want to make four points today to outline how we can do this:

One: Nigeria must have a permanent seat at the UN Security Council. This should take place as part of a wider process of institutional reform.

Two: We need urgent action ⁠⁠to promote sovereign debt relief and access to trade and financing.
Three: Countries that host minerals must benefit from those minerals.

Four: The digital divide must close. As our friend the Secretary General has said: ‘A.I.’ must stand for ‘Africa Included’.

6.On my first point: the United Nations will recover its relevance only when it reflects the world as it is, not as it was. Nigeria’s journey tells this story with clarity: when the UN was founded, we were a colony of 20 million people, absent from the tables where decisions about our fate were taken; today, we are a sovereign nation of over 236 million, projected to be the third most populous country in the world, with one of the youngest and most dynamic populations on earth. A stabilising force in regional security and a consistent partner in global peacekeeping, our case for permanent seat at the Security Council is a demand for fairness, for representation, and for reform that restores credibility to the very institution upon which the hope of multilateralism rests.

7.This is why Nigeria stands firmly behind the UN80 Initiative of the Secretary-General, and the resolution adopted by this Assembly on 18 July 2025, a bold step to reform the wider United Nations system for greater relevance, efficiency, and effectiveness in the face of unprecedented financial strain. We support the drive to rationalise structures and end the duplication of responsibilities and programmes, so that this institution may speak with one voice and act with greater coherence.

Madam President,

8.None of us can achieve a peaceful world in isolation. This is the heavy burden of sovereignty. Sovereignty is a covenant of shared responsibility, a recognition that our survival is bound to the survival of others. To live up to this charge, we must walk hand in hand with our neighbours and partners. We must follow the trails of weapons, of money, and of people. For these forces, too often driven by faceless non-state actors, ignite the fires of conflict across our region.

Madam President,

9.Nigeria’s soldiers and civilians carry a proud legacy. They have participated in 51 out of 60 United Nations peacekeeping operations since our independence in 1960. We have stood with our partners in Africa to resolve conflicts, and we continue that commitment today through the Multinational Joint Task Force. At home, we confront the scourge of insurgency with resolve. From this long and difficult struggle with violent extremism, one truth stands clear: military tactics may win battles measured in months and years, but in wars that span generations, it is values and ideas that deliver the ultimate victory.

10. We are despised by terrorists because we choose tolerance over tyranny. Their ambition is to divide us and to poison our humanity with a toxic rhetoric of hate. Our difference is the distance between shadow and light, between despair and hope, between the ruin of anarchy and the promise of order. We do not only fight wars, we feed and shelter the innocent victims of war. This is why we are not indifferent to the devastations of our neighbours, near and distant. This is why we speak of the violence and aggression visited upon innocent civilians in Gaza, the illegal attack on Qatar, and the tensions that scar the wider region. It is not only because of the culture of impunity that makes such acts intolerable, but because our own bitter experience has taught us that such violence never ends where it begins.

11.We do not believe that the sanctity of human life should be trapped in the corridors of endless debate. That is why we say, without stuttering and without doubt, that a two-state solution remains the most dignified path to lasting peace for the people of Palestine. For too long, this community has borne the weight of moral conflict. For too long, we have been caught in the crossfire of violence that offends the conscience of humanity. We come not as partisans, but as peacemakers. We come as brothers and sisters of a shared world, a world that must never reduce the right to live into the currency of devious politics. The people of Palestine are not collateral damage in a civilisation searching for order. They are human beings, equal in worth, entitled to the same freedoms and dignities that the rest of us take for granted.

12.We want to make the choice crystal clear: civilised values over fear, civilised values over vengeance, civilised values over bloodshed. We show the opportunities that peace brings, just as the extremist hopes to drive apart rival communities and different religions. We work through multilateral platforms within the rule of law, to build the consensus and support that makes this immensely difficult and dangerous task that much easier. This is how we deny our enemies the space they crave to fuel tension and despair. It is our experience that this offers the best, perhaps only hope for peace, reconciliation and victory for the civilised values of a shared humanity. Nigeria, as a diverse country, also recognises the variable geometry of Democracy, its different forms and speeds. For this reason, we are working with the United Nations to strengthen Democratic institutions in our region and beyond, through the Regional Partnership for Democracy.

Madam President,

13.Point two: the price of peace is eternal vigilance. The increasingly difficult security outlook has prompted many Member States to count the cost of the emerging world order. We in Nigeria are already familiar with such difficult choices: infrastructure renewal or defence platforms? schools or tanks? Our view is that the path to sustainable peace lies in growth and prosperity. The government has taken difficult but necessary steps to restructure our economy and remove distortions, including subsidies and currency controls that benefited the few at the expense of the many.

14.I believe in the power of the market to transform. Our task is to enable and facilitate, and to trust in the ingenuity and enterprise of the people. But the process of transition is difficult and brings unavoidable hardship. This year, we held the inaugural West Africa Economic Summit in Abuja to bring investors and opportunities together. The results exceeded our expectations and are a clear indication of what innovation can deliver.

15.It is in that same spirit of dynamic review that I invite the United Nations to re-examine the best use of scarce resources. One critical area is climate change. It is not an abstract issue about an indeterminate fate, to be settled at some distant point in the future. It is not even solely an environmental issue. It is about national, regional, and international security. It is about irregular migration. Truly, this is an “everyone issue.” We are all stakeholders, and we are all beneficiaries of the best outcomes.

Madam President,

16.This is why relevant Ministers have been instructed to work with the UN to make the best use of climate funds. We believe there are huge, shared dividends to accrue from increased support for education, for resilient housing, for access to technology and financing to allow vulnerable communities to thrive: to become part of solutions, rather than problems.

17.Nigeria and Africa have made significant strides in recent years to put our affairs in order. We can take that progress to the next level, a level that presents new opportunities for trade, investment and profit, if we can access reforms to strengthen the international financial architecture. We need urgent action to promote debt relief - not as an act of charity but as a clear path to the peace and prosperity that benefits us all.

18.I am calling for new and binding mechanism to manage sovereign debt, a sort of International Court of Justice for money, that will allow emerging economies to escape the economic straitjacket of primary production of unprocessed exports.

19.It has been over for decades since the Lagos Action Plan outlined a route away from debt and dependence that highlighted opportunities, that today should still be explored for local added value for processing and manufacturing in everything from agriculture to solid minerals and petrochemicals. The African Continental Free Trade Area is a remarkable achievement of co-operation. We remain fully committed to the achievement of SDGs – and are convinced this can be best delivered by focusing principally on our primary mission of growth and prosperity.

Madam President,

20.Our third point. We welcome steps to move towards peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo. We agree that international investment and engagement offer a way out of the cycle of decay and violence. Access to strategic minerals, from Sierra Leone in the 1990s and Sudan today, has for too long been a source of conflict rather than prosperity. Africa – and I must include Nigeria – has in abundance the critical minerals that will drive the technologies of the future. Investment in exploration, development and processing of these minerals, in Africa, will diversify supply to the international market, reduce tensions between major economies and help shape the architecture for peace and prosperity, on a continent that too often in the past has been left behind by the rivalries and competition between different blocs.

21.We know in Nigeria, that we are more stable when those communities that have access to key resources are able to benefit from those resources. This has been our journey in the oil producing region of the Niger Delta. I believe that we will strengthen the international order, when those countries that produce strategic minerals benefit fairly from those minerals - in terms of investment, partnership, local processing and jobs. When we export raw materials, as we have been doing, tension, inequality and instability fester.

Madam President,

22.The fourth pillar for change that I am advocating, is a dedicated initiative, bringing together researchers, private sector, governments and communities, to close the digital divide. As we stand on the threshold of new and dramatic technological change, we are still absorbing the impact of the revolution in information and communication of the past 20 years. We understand better than we did, the opportunities technology offers as well as the safeguards we need to enable growth and mitigate the potential for corrosion. Some worry about fake news. We have plenty of that, with the potential of devastating real-world consequences in countries rich and poor. I am more worried about an emerging generation that grows ever more cynical, because it believes nothing and trusts less. As technology shakes up public administration, law, finance, conflict and so much of the human condition, I am calling for a new dialogue, to ensure we promote the best of the opportunities that are arising - and promote the level of access that allows emerging economies more quickly, to close a wealth and knowledge gap that is in no one’s interest.

23.I join you today to reassert that Nigeria’s commitment to peace, to development, to unity, to multilateralism, and to the defence of human rights is beyond compromise. For none of us is safe until all of us are safe. The road ahead will not be easy, and we know there are no quick fixes to the trials that test the human spirit. Yet history reminds us that bold action in pursuit of noble ideals has always defined the story of the United Nations. Time and again, we have found the wisdom to balance sovereign rights with collective responsibility. That balance is once again in question, but I believe that a renewed commitment to multilateralism, not as a slogan but as an article of faith, remains our surest path forward. Nigeria dedicates itself fully and without reservation to that noble cause.

24.I thank you.

Tinubu's address at UNGA80 (delivered by VP Shettima)

Well done Vice president Shettima . Both president Tinubu and VP Shettima are so sound

helinues:
Well done Vice president Shettima . Both president Tinubu and VP Shettima are so sound

He was not composed. I can't tell why or maybe stage fright but he was there last year. I don't think he prepped before getting on the stage.

Why didn’t Tinubu go by himself? Why hasn’t he traveled to the US to attempt to strengthen relationships between both countries?

Look at the empty hall.
Nobody is there. Do you know what that means?
It means that Nigeria is no more rated internationally. No one wants to listen to tribal grunts of some inconsequential buffoons parading around as the leaders of the "Giant of Africa".
Just take a look at where the misrule of the biggest black nation on earth by a combination of Northern Nigeria and the South West of Nigeria has brought Nigeria to.

Nobody respects Nigeria anymore. This hall was nearly full when the South African president was speaking. But what we have here as Shettima spoke was basically some low level embassy officials. No serious Head of State was listening. Nigeria under the leadership of the North and the SouthWest, has failed Africa. There used to be a time when even the Americans wait to listen to speeches made by Nigerian leaders. Now not even fellow African dignitaries care to listen.

The destruction of Nigerias giant standing in international affairs as the "The Giant of Africa" is a direct consequence of the misrule of this country by the two regions that have held sway since 1966. They have brought Nigeria no single sustainable gain..

They have had trillions of hard cash to play with. They have led during a long period in Nigerias history that was largely peaceful. But there misrule brought us Boko Haram, fulani herdsmen, separatist insurgencies and total economic collapse! Nigeria is seriously blessed with both human and material resources. The land is generously arable. Yet, these ones have no clue how to move a nation from Stage A to Stage B ..

Essentially, these two blundering regions had everything they needed to grow a prosperous state but choose to turn the biggest black nation on earth into a colony of slaves for the neocolonialsts.

Nigerias earth shattering failure has absolutely nothing to do with the black race/black man nor the many ethnic groups that inhabit this space..., rather it is a direct testament to the culture of acerbic bigotry and wayward malfeasance that characterise the traditional administrative set ups in the two dominant ethnic groups in these two "ruling regions", who as a consequence of the outcome of the war, imposed their warped outlook to life on the whole country post war/1970.

No one respects a country led by the likes of Tinubu and Buhari..

It's every year you guys will be clamouring for UN seat security Council, yet you cannot secure your own country .

A man that cannot feed his own mouth, that is pleading to be feeding others.
Joke of century!

Why is the media not talking about the president always running away from attending UN meetings that all members are represented by their president... Tinubu is not sick , he travels to France and UK always ...but will not travel to USA to attend the UN meetings which is part of his official duties .... the country is meant to be very hot with this news... this shows u that there is definitely something yhe president is running away from...with the story of his past

cr7lomo:
Why is the media not talking about the president always running away from attending UN meetings that all members are represented by their president... Tinubu is not sick , he travels to France and UK always ...but will not travel to USA to attend the UN meetings which is part of his official duties .... the country is meant to be very hot with this news... this shows u that there is definitely something yhe president is running away from...with the story of his past

Dude is being careful about travelling to America because Trump dey behave like mad person sometimes. He may forget all diplomatic ties and instruct the FBI to pick him up because of his past 😂😂

Why bulaba no attend this town hall meeting nawao

Good speech!

But it is still full of unnecessary figure of speeches as if you want to teach English people literature in English.

Donald Trump presented his own literally and straight to the point without a single figure of speech so that no one will be confused at any point. But Africans always will not want to be straightforward in their ways but want to be crooked

Why?

SmartPolician:
Dude is being careful about travelling to America because Trump dey behave like mad person sometimes. He may forget all diplomatic ties and instruct the FBI to pick him up because of his past 😂😂

Even under Biden, he still refused to go, he still sent shettima ... if Atiku were president and did this same thing, this same Tinubu and his goons and online goons will keep on Attacking him , calling it an embarrassment that we have a wanted international felon as president.. they will keep on selling the narrative thru media daily, and will sponsor protests..until he is kicked out of power

HE Shettima, this Baba Sabi speak sha!

And his handwriting na top notch artistic!

i swear no be shettima write this thing
8more character

fergie001:
He was not composed. I can't tell why or maybe stage fright but he was there last year. I don't think he prepped before getting on the stage.

Obi dients sent brukutu to his hotel room before the speech

SmartPolician:
Dude is being careful about travelling to America because Trump dey behave like mad person sometimes. He may forget all diplomatic ties and instruct the FBI to pick him up because of his past 😂😂

My guy abeg. I no wan laugh abeg

Tinubu is so scared for US

fergie001:
Tinubu's address at UNGA80 (delivered by VP Shettima)

Can someone please tell me why VP Shettima is the one always giving speech at the UN General Assembly, why is Tinubu not the one on the podium? At least we all saw Trump and other world leaders there.

Which country will take you seriously when you don't take a gathering like this seriously? Instead you will be traveling around the world like Ajala the traveler wasting tax payers money on frivolous trips that has never done any good to Nigeria.

It appears Tinubu is on a mission to break a traveling record set by late Buhari.

Rugo, the president of Kenya was very sound and good, he made Africa proud yesterday with his sensible speech in his address to UN

helinues:
Well done Vice president Shettima . Both president Tinubu and VP Shettima are so sound

Even you will seem sound when you're given a document to read ogbeni

helinues:
Well done Vice president Shettima . Both president Tinubu and VP Shettima are so sound

No one asked you.

Why you dey fear?

If you like, come out during the day and say to the moon a hundred times, "You are shining very well." It still won't change the fact that it is where it is not supposed to be. It is meant for the night and not the day.

Are Moslems not amazing.
They support Palestine to get its own country but reject Biafra in Nigeria 🤨

givedemwotowoto:
Why did Tinubu go by himself? Why hasn’t he traveled to the US to attempt to strengthen relationships between both countries?

Oh my God! You complained Tinubu travels too much and started given long nonsense list of his trips.

You said Shetima is idle and now Tinubu send Shetima to UNGA.yet you are not pleased.

Pls what relationship? Does UN belong to the US? Pls what relationship do Nigeria want with a bullies Trump?

Has Putin ever gone to UNGA? So what is the fuss here now?

Some other world leaders didn't attend so why Tinubu not attending now an issue? Infact tgat UNGA is to what important than talj and handshake?

Bubu4Sea:
Are Moslems not amazing.
They support Palestine to get its own country but reject Biafra in Nigeria 🤨

Which Biafra? Biafra from where? Has Palestine ever be part of Isreal? Bia, nothing like Biafra in global stage because no country will support break up of another country better you understand that now. So rest OK.

Daniiel:
Why bulaba no attend this town hall meeting nawao

Have you ask why Putin never attended is he not a president, why Tinubu not attended now a big issue? And by the way this useless UNGA means what? UNGA year in year out meeting is all about useless talks and handshake.

owobokiri:
Look at the empty hall.
Nobody is there. Do you know what that means?
It means that Nigeria is no more rated internationally. No one wants to listen to tribal grunts of some inconsequential buffoons parading around as the leaders of the "Giant of Africa".
Just take a look at where the misrule of the biggest black nation on earth by a combination of Northern Nigeria and the South West of Nigeria has brought Nigeria to.

Nobody respects Nigeria anymore. This hall was nearly full when the South African president was speaking. But what we have here as Shettima spoke was basically some low level embassy officials. No serious Head of State was listening. Nigeria under the leadership of the North and the SouthWest, has failed Africa. There used to be a time when even the Americans wait to listen to speeches made by Nigerian leaders. Now not even fellow African dignitaries care to listen.

The destruction of Nigerias giant standing in international affairs as the "The Giant of Africa" is a direct consequence of the misrule of this country by the two regions that have held sway since 1966. They have brought Nigeria no single sustainable gain..

They have had trillions of hard cash to play with. They have led during a long period in Nigerias history that was largely peaceful. But there misrule brought us Boko Haram, fulani herdsmen, separatist insurgencies and total economic collapse! Nigeria is seriously blessed with both human and material resources. The land is generously arable. Yet, these ones have no clue how to move a nation from Stage A to Stage B ..

Essentially, these two blundering regions had everything they needed to grow a prosperous state but choose to turn the biggest black nation on earth into a colony of slaves for the neocolonialsts.

Nigerias earth shattering failure has absolutely nothing to do with the black race/black man nor the many ethnic groups that inhabit this space..., rather it is a direct testament to the culture of acerbic bigotry and wayward malfeasance that characterise the traditional administrative set ups in the two dominant ethnic groups in these two "ruling regions", who as a consequence of the outcome of the war, imposed their warped outlook to life on the whole country post war/1970.

No one respects a country led by the likes of Tinubu and Buhari..

Omohhh this crying and gnashing of teeth is too much nau.

The most pitiable thing is that this crying will continue for the next 6 years

Let them know there is real Hunger2025 in Nigeria at the moment

Jayhome24:
Have you ask why Putin never attended is he not a president, why Tinubu not attended now a big issue? And by the way this useless UNGA means what? UNGA year in year out meeting is all about useless talks and handshake.

You still dey bother yourself about those people. By now you should know the kind of thing they are and just ignore them when they rant as usual.