Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar says those responsible for the negligence that led to the imposition of visa restriction on Nigeria by the United States should be punished.

Atiku was reacting to the restriction placed on immigrant travellers to the United States by President Donald Trump.

In a statement he personally signed and issued in Abuja today, the former Vice President charged the US government to punish those responsible for the negligence rather than ordinary Nigerian immigrants.

Atiku, a former presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), regretted that the ban does not take into consideration the pro-American sentiment of the Nigerian public.

He stated that though the current Nigerian government has its deficiencies and faults, the Nigeria people ought not to be punished for them.

“I received with sadness the policy of the government of the United States of America to place Nigeria on its travel ban list.

“While I understand the reasons given by the Trump administration (the failure of the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to share information and to address issues of terrorism), the ban does not take into account the pro-American sentiments of the Nigerian public and the solidarity previous Nigerian administrations have had with the United States.

“I urge the government of President Donald Trump to consider the history of US-Nigerian relationships. Nigeria was one of the few African nations that joined the US-led coalition during Operation Desert Storm in 1990-1991 when the United States championed the liberation of Kuwait.

“The Trump administration may also consider the pivotal role Nigeria, in partnership with the US, played in bringing peace to Liberia, an American sphere of influence, that now enjoys democracy because Nigerian blood and money paved the way for peace in that nation.

“Nigeria has also consistently voted in support of the United States and her allies at the United Nations and other multi-lateral world bodies. This is even as we are perhaps the biggest trading partner that the United States has in Africa, even where we had alternatives.

“Nigerians love the United States and have been a major force for the positive development of that great nation: 77 per cent of all Black doctors in the United States are Nigerians. Nigerians are also the most educated immigrant community in America. Surely, the US stands to benefit if it allows open borders with a country like Nigeria that is able to provide skilled, hardworking and dedicated personnel in two-way traffic.

“The current Nigerian administration may have its deficiencies and deep faults, but the Nigeria people ought not to be punished for their inefficiencies.

“Once again, I call on President Trump to consider adopting measures that individually target those in government who have failed in their duties, rather than target the entire Nigerian population.”