Evelyn Okakwu
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| The President; during a recent visit by his media team to London. |
Exactly
100 days since he left Nigeria on Sunday, May 7 for
London to attend to his ailing health, controversy has
continued to trail President Muhammadu Buhari’s continued absence from the
country.
Since Mr. Buhari’s travelled, the
presidency has repeatedly tried to assure Nigerians he was getting better and
would soon return to the country.
Photos of the president meeting with
different categories of public officials and politicians in London, where he is
receiving treatment, have been circulated to calm concerned citizens. Also,
officials who have met the president including Acting President Yemi Osinbajo
and Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo have repeatedly said he was getting better
and would soon return to the country.
His aides have also said he would
only return when his doctors so advice and that only Mr. Buhari could tell
Nigerians the true nature of his illness or indeed his health status.
However, while the latest trip is
Mr. Buhari’s longest outside the country, it is not the first time the president
would travel on health grounds.
HISTORY OF HEALTH TRAVELS
Since assuming office as Nigeria’s
democratically elected President on May 29, 2015 Mr. Buhari has been away four
times on similar vacations, while handing over power to his deputy, Yemi
Osinbajo as acting President, in compliance with section 145 (1) of the 1999
constitution.
During his first trip, eight
months after assuming office, Mr. Buhari departed the country onFebruary 5, 2016 to return
five days later according to a letter signed by his special assistant on media,
Femi Adesina.
Exactly four months later on
June, 5 2016, the president embarked on a second journey to London, this time
to attend to a problem with his ear, his aides said.
The subject of Mr. Buhari’s health
started dominating the national discuss, when during his third trip, on January 19,
Mr. Buhari extended his medical vacation, after an initial announcement that
his trip would last ten work days.
In the letter regarding his travel,
dated January 18 Mr. Buhari had indicated that he would be away for 10 days on
a medical vacation to attend to his health.
The leave was supposed to last
between January 23 and February 6, according to the letter transmitted to both
chambers of the National Assembly.
However a day before the expiration
of the vacation on February 5,
the National Assembly received yet another letter from the president requesting
the extension of his medical leave.
This time, a date of return was not
included in the statement, signed by Special Adviser to the President on Media
and Publicity, Femi Adesina.
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| Femi Adesina |
According to the statement, the
extension was needed “to complete and receive the results of a series of tests
recommended by the President’s doctors.”
The situation was further heightened by inconsistent
information regarding the president’s health status as
disclosed by his aides.
On March 10,
exactly 50 days after his departure, Mr. Buhari returned but was not able to
adequately discharge his duties.
About 58 days later, on May 7, the
president embarked on another journey for his medical check-up, without any
specific date for his return.
Announcing the president’s departure
on his twitter handle, his spokesperson, Femi Adesina, said the latest journey
was for Mr. Buhari’s‘medical follow up’, adding that the date of his
(president’s) return would be determined by his doctors.
Various
individuals and groups have reacted to the president’s medical vacation, giving
divergent opinions on the matter.
In his comment regarding the issue,
a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Robert Clark said
the section of the constitution that deals with the president’s handing over of
power in the event of a vacation, is defective.
“That section 145 says that unless
the president himself sends a contrary statement; you cannot do anything; that
is the lacuna. Buhari can stay till the end of his tenure; nothing will
happen,” Mr. Clark said.
Another lawyer, Liborous Oshoma, who spoke with PREMIUM
TIMES on the matter listed five questions that he believes
Nigerians should address about Mr. Buhari’s medical vacation.
“What is the status of the President
health?
“Who is paying for his medical and
or hospital bills?
“If we (Nigerians) are the ones
paying, how much have we paid thus far?
In another opinion, Razak Atunwa, a member of the House of
Representatives from Kwara State, said the government is running smoothly
because of Mr. Buhari’s respect for the rule of law.
“With
all sense of patriotism and equanimity, it is important to bear in mind that we
have a president who is in a situation that is by no fault of his own.
“Having met the constitutional
provisions, the president shows he is a man of rule of law,” Mr. Atunwa, a
member of the ruling All Progressives Congress, said.
“Governance
has not suffered and will not suffer for his being away,’ he added.
About 90 days after Mr. Buhari’s
departure, a group of Nigerians led by popular entertainer, Charles Oputa, also
called Charly boy, began a protest to demand Mr. Buhari’s compulsory return or
resignation with a hash tag #ResumeOrResign.
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| anti-Buhari portesters in Abuja |
Five
days after the protesters began their call for Mr. Buhari’s compulsory return,
a pro- Buhari group, led by Goodluck Obi, began a counter protest urging the
president to rather focus on getting better before returning; a development
which resulted in a clash between the two groups.
On Tuesday, the #ResumeOrResign group
took their protest to the Wuse Market, the largest market in the Nigerian
capital Abuja, where they were attacked by suspected supporters of the
president.
The market was subsequently shut
down due to the violence which took an ethnic dimension.
THE CONTROVERSIAL
LAW
As the controversy surrounding the
president’s absence continues, the relevant section of the Nigerian
constitution relating to Mr. Buhari’s absence is Section 145 (1) which states
that:“Whenever the President transmits to the President of the Senate and the
Speaker of the House of Representatives a written declaration that he is
proceeding on vacation or that he is otherwise unable to discharge the
functions of his office, until he transmits to them a written declaration to
the contrary such functions shall be discharged by the Vice-President as Acting
President.”
As
stated by Mr. Clark, the senior advocate, that section puts no time limit for
which he can be outside the country.
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| The Nigerian Senate |
The Nigerian Senate also adopted a
similar stance when it stated that Mr. Buhari did no wrong as he complied with
that section before leaving the country.
While the president remains outside
the country, the controversy surrounding his health and fitness to continue in
office lingers. For protesters demanding he returns immediately or resigns,
they have vowed to continue their protest despite the Tuesday violence.
“We reiterate commitment to remain
resolute in demanding full disclosure regarding the state of health of the
President. It is the right of the Nigerian people to know the true state of
health of the man they voted into power and for whose healthcare they are
paying,” one of the leaders of the protest, Deji Adeyanju, said in a statement
on Tuesday.
“We read almost every day in the
news that Mr. President is recovering fast and would soon return to his seat.
Is he in any condition to continue when he returns? Or he will return and go
back after a couple of weeks or months?
“Why is resignation not an option?”
the lawyer said.
