LAGOS FEBRUARY 17TH (URHOBOTODAY)-President Muhammadu Buhari’s state of health has become the subject of speculation — both locally and internationally — despite the reassurances from presidential spokesmen insisting that the president is ‘hale and healthy.’
These reassurances have raised further questions from Nigerians who ask why a ‘hale and healthy’ 74-year-old man prefers London’s cold weather to the warmth of Abuja?
A letter sent to the Senate on 5 February seeking an indefinite extension of Buhari’s leave has, however, shed light on his state of health.
In the letter, the president explained that during his routine examination by his UK doctors, certain test results indicated the need for a course of medications in addition to further appointments scheduled for ‘next week.’
‘I am therefore notifying the distinguished Senate that I am extending my leave until the doctors are satisfied that certain factors are ruled out.
‘In the circumstances, the vice president will continue to act on my behalf’, Buhari explained.
The tests should have been completed last week and there was speculation that the president was returning on the evening of 11 February.
But that was not to be the case. Instead, it was his wife, First Lady Aisha Buhari, who returned via a visit to Saudi Arabia.
Speaking to the local media on her return, she thanked Nigerians for their ‘goodwill’ towards her husband but made no further comment on when he would return.
It is also unclear why she decided to leave her husband, and whether her return is an indication that Buhari will come back soon.
Even though no official details of President Buhari’s medical condition have been released, sources have told Nigeria Politics & Security that it may be related to the ear infection for which he was treated in London in June 2016.
Before that medical trip he had only partial hearing in the left ear which affected his balance.
Consequently, his aides kept him out of the public domain which led to the cancellation of scheduled appointments to Lagos and the Niger Delta, where he had planned to launch an ambitious project to clean up the pollutants.
This had led to further speculation that Buhari may be suffering from Ménière’s disease – an ailment of the ear caused by excess fluid in the inner ear.
This speculation remains unconfirmed. Experts claim that Ménière’s disease can be healed through lifestyle changes.
The suspicion is that the president is staying in London to implement such lifestyle changes in a medically controlled environment.