PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari was expected to leave Abuja Sunday night for London for a “follow-up medical consultation with his doctors.”
A statement issued by presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina, in Abuja on Sunday explained that Buhari had planned to leave Sunday afternoon, but decided to tarry a bit, due to the arrival of 82 Chibok girls who arrived Abuja earlier in the day.
It said the President wished to assure all Nigerians that “there is no cause for worry. He is very grateful for the prayers and good wishes of the people, and hopes they would continue to pray for the peace and unity of the nation.”
According to the statement, the length of the President’s stay in London will be determined by the doctors.
“Government will continue to function normally under the able leadership of the Vice President,” it said, adding that President Buhari has transmitted letters about the trip to the Senate and the House of Representatives, in compliance with Section 145 (1) of the 1999 Constitution.
Buhari returned from London March 10, 2017 after about two months of medical vacation after which he revealed that he had never been so sick in life like he did during his stay in the United Kingdom where he had blood transfusion.
His revelation came amidst several attempts by government officials including Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to mask his illness by maintaining that the president was hale and hearty.
Since his arrival from the medical vacation, President Buhari had drastically scaled down his schedule and hardly appeared in public.
He had failed to attend three consecutive meetings of the meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) with the last one being last week, leaving the Vice President to preside.
One other FEC meeting was also canceled ostensibly because of his health status.
The Presidency had announced that even though he might not be seen in the office, he would continue to work from his official residence within the Presidential Villa.
Speaking on the president’s absence at the end of the last FEC meeting, Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, insisted that Buhari chose the Wednesday to rest on the advice of his doctors in order to recover faster.
He said: “Why the president was not at the meeting. You are also aware that the President was at his office yesterday, and he worked at his office yesterday.
“A few days before now, we came out to say he’s been asked to take some rest by his doctors, and he chose today to rest and not to attend the Federal Executive Council meeting.
“We want to take this opportunity to thank Nigerians who have expressed a lot of concern and sympathy, and who have been praying for him. Like we’ve always said, Mr president will stick to his doctor’s advice so that he can recover much more quickly.”
The minister rejected suggestions that President Buhari was being fed intravenously, describing the report as “bunkum,” adding that the president would rest for as long as his doctors ask him to.
Asked to react to the report, he replied: “The answer to your first question is absolute bunkum. It is absolutely untrue that he is being fed. He was in the office yesterday as you all reported.
“And if the doctors say he should take a rest, I think you will recover faster when you rest when you ought to rest, rather than by forcing yourself to work when you are not fit to work.
“All he is doing is he is following the doctor’s advice. Mr President himself told the nation he has never been this sick and he is going to take it easy. He said it from day one when he came back from the UK.
“So, whatever is happening today is not any strange development, is exactly what he said. That he’s been adviced to take it easy by his doctors and that he will soon also go back for further treatment.
“So, I don’t think its anything that is out of the place from what he said. He has been quite transparent and upfront in the matter concerning his health.”
Mohammed said the president ‘s health status would not affect the plans to mark the second year anniversary of the administration which comes up in a few weeks.
He said the government has reasons to celebrate because of achievements recorded in various sectors in the last two years.
“We’d be two years old in a few weeks time. And in our very normal customary way we are going to mark it because we have a lot of story to tell,” he said.
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