President Muhammadu Buhari, who returned on Saturday from a 103-day medical vacation in the United Kingdom, may yet return there for medical checkup if need arises, his media adviser has said. Buhari addressed the nation yesterday, his fi rst since coming back, warning of his administration’s readiness to deal ruthlessly with proponents of the dissolution of Nigeria. Th e president was, however, silent on his health condition, and gave no indication whether he would seek further treatment.
But his spokesman, Femi Adesina, confi rmed the president might return for further medical check-ups if and when the need arises. Speaking on Sunrise Daily, a breakfast programme on Channels TV yesterday morning, Adesina called on Nigerians to pray that Buhari remains in good health.
“What Nigerians should hope for is that our president will remain whole. But, if there is any reason to go out, why not? You need to fi rst stay alive before you can lead a country. So, whatever it takes for our president to remain healthy should be done, but we want to hope and believe that the worst is over,” he said. Adesina said the president was prepared to assume offi ce after transmitting a letter to the National Assembly, informing the lawmakers he was back to his duty post as demanded by the Constitution.
“Th ey don’t have to read it or debate it, no. What the Constitution requires is for him to send it. Once it is sent he assumes offi ce.” (Premium Times) Meanwhile, President Buhari will be working from his offi cial residence, and not his offi ce, for now. A Presidency source who spoke to State House correspondents under anonymity, attributed the development to ongoing renovation in the President’s office.
Th e source was however silent on how long the renovation will last. …Writes NASS And in line with constitutional provision, President Buhari has written the National Assembly, notifying the legislature of his return to offi ce. Th e letter reads in part: “In compliance with Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), I write to intimate that I have resumed my functions as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria with eff ect from Monday, 21st August, 2017, after my medical follow-up in the United Kingdom.
” Th e President left for London on May 7, 2017, and handed the reins of government to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, who functioned as the Acting President. Atiku lauds return Meanwhile, former Vice President and chieftain of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC), Atiku Abubakar, has expressed joy over President Buhari’s return to the country after his medical leave in the UK. In a press statement issued by his media offi ce in Abuja yesterday, the former VP said every well-meaning Nigerian should be happy with the recovery of the President.
According to him, a healthy and stronger Buhari would be able to concentrate more vigorously on the task of implementing his campaign promises to Nigerians. He said President Buhari’s recovery “is good news for the country and Nigerians, because it would reduce the needless conspiracy theories surrounding his health and long absence.” Th e Wazirin Adamawa noted that the task of governance “is so enormous that the country should celebrate the return of the president.” Atiku advised Nigerians to help the President succeed “by focusing on issues that unite us rather than those that divide us, and thereby distracting the President from attending to the tasks at hand.” ACF hails Buhari on national unity In a related development, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), has commended President Buhari’s national broadcast on Monday, describing it as “truly presidential, timely and reassuring” on the unity and indissolubility of Nigeria as a federation. Th e organisation supported the President’s stand against hate speeches, and urged Nigerians to henceforth heed to the call for restraint, and resort to peaceful means of ventilating their grievances. ACF in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Muhammad Ibrahim Biu, said, “Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) once more welcomes President Muhammadu Buhari from his medical vacation and again wishes him good health, Allah’s guidance and protection in the discharge of his responsibility. “His Presidential broadcast of today was commendable and all encompassing, especially on the unity and indivisibility of the country. ACF supports the position of government on the issues of restructuring and the channels of addressing genuine grievances through the appropriate democratic institutions such as the legislature and judiciary. “On the issue of hate speeches and infl ammatory remarks, now that government has taken a decisive action to arrest the situation, ACF appeals to all Nigerians to henceforth heed to the call for restraint and resort to peaceful means of ventilating their grievances. ACF further calls on governments at all levels to step up peace and confi dencebuilding in order to douse the current socio-political tensions,” Biu said. …NLC too Similarly, a member of the Nigeria Labour Congress’ National Executive Council, and General Secretary, National Union of Textile Garments and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria, (NUTGTWN), Comrade Issa Aremu, in a separate text, called on all Nigerians, state or nonstate alike, to rise and defend the constitution of the country in the face of what he described as “forces of disunity, revisionism and sheer disintegration.” He lauded President Buhari for exhibiting remarkable statesmanship by devoting his fi rst appreciation speech to the vexed issue of Nigeria’s unity, by reminding all Nigerians of the “obvious truism” that the motto of Nigeria as enshrined in the constitution is “Unity and Faith, Peace and Progress.” Th e labour leader urged other “statesmen and women to emulate the President by talking the right talk and working the talk on Nigerian renaissance, rather than organising wasteful thanksgiving/solidarity visits of dubious value. “All Nigerians should not only decry hate speeches and hate conducts of forces of disunity, but should also talk the language of unity and love as President Buhari had done. Hate speeches come from the constituencies, states and local governments, not necessarily in Abuja. “I don’t know why the governors, legislators and council chairmen in the hate domains could not call the misguided few in their domains to order as Buhari has done.” CAN also speaks up Also in a reaction to the presidential address, the Niger state chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), has lauded the President’s nationwide broadcast denouncing infl ammatory statements capable of causing chaos in the country. In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Minna yesterday, Mathias Echioda, the state CAN chairman, also commended the president’s resoluteness that the country’s unity was not negotiable. NAN reports that Buhari, who returned from London on Saturday after a medical trip, said the government would no longer tolerate hate speeches and infl ammatory statements. “President Muhammadu Buhari’s address to Nigerians this morning is a move in the right direction. Buhari’s statement is a clear call to all sectional patriots and hate champions of our dear country to put away their swords. We are better together as a nation. “We don’t only welcome Buhari home, we congratulate him for such a bold step this morning,” he said. Echioda said CAN was in support of Buhari’s leadership and fi ght against corruption and other forms of social menace. “As CAN in Niger state, we are genuinely behind him in his fi ght against social menace”, he added.
