‘Nigeria will miss you’ — Gbaja lauds Laing, outgoing UK high commissioner

Femi Gbajabiamila, speaker of the house of representatives, on Tuesday met with Catriona Laing, the UK high commissioner to Nigeria.

The meeting was held at Gbajabiamila’s office at the national assembly, Abuja.

TheCable had reported the appointment of Richard Hugh Montgomery to replace Laing as the high commissioner to Nigeria.

Gbajabiamila said Laing has been “supportive” and that the national assembly “enjoyed” working with her to pass some critical bills.

The speaker said Nigeria will miss Laing and that he hopes her successor will “carry on with her trajectory”.

“It’s a bitter-sweet visit I would call it. Sweet because it’s always been good to have you around, sit with you, knock heads together, and discuss various issues. But bitter because you’re outgoing. It is bitter because I personally have to speak for several Nigerians everywhere and in their official and in their personal capacity as it is,” Gbajamiamila said.

“I have enjoyed a great working relationship with you, you and over time had robust engagements and interactions both formal and informal. You’ve been very supportive. It’s been a very enriching time for me.

“Your passion is so evident in many of our discussions, and my hope and my prayer are that whoever succeeds you will carry on in that same trajectory in building and fostering an even more sustainable relationship between our two countries. I really do thank you very much.

“We will miss you. Nigeria will miss you. The parliament will miss you and your various engagements. I thank you once again very profusely for the interest that you have shown in the work we do here in Parliament.”

Gbajabiamila said Laing has “so much more to offer ” her country and the world.

In her remarks, Laing said her working experience in Nigeria has been “wonderful”.

“So, I’ve had some highs, many highs, a few lows, but overall, it’s been an absolutely wonderful experience. And it’s a very strong foundation and it’s been really a good working relationship with Mr Sspeaker and his team,” she said

“We’ve worked together on a number of very important electoral bills, his own initiative, the centre’s foundation (Gbajabiamila legislative mentorship programme) he’s set up to support young legislators and I was very privileged to support the launching of that so it’s been a great pleasure working with him.”