Why APC has refrained from dabbling into Buhari's health controversy

Malam Bolaji Abdullahi, APC National Publicity Secretary

Why has the party been silent on the raging controversy over the president's state of health?

We have, of course, expressed our solidarity with the President, especially after the disclosure that he would stay back to attend some medical issues. However, what we know as a party is that the President was going on vacation and will undergo some routine medical tests. After the initial routine medical test, we were told that he would need to stay back to get the outcome of some tests he took. We were also told that he would need time to rest.

The point I'm making is that as a party, there is nothing that we know that is different from what is in the public domain. So, that is the reason we have not felt the need to make any comment because the people who have the responsibility to speak for the President have spoken based on what they know and we don't have anything to add other than that.

Why has the party not visited the President?

We don't feel the need to visit him because we don't see the reason. He told Nigerians that he was going on vacation and will undergo routine check-up. So, what do we want to achieve by visiting him? You noticed that the people who have visited him are individuals who have personal relationship with him or people who have official responsibility to relate with the President. Such individuals are people like the President of the Senate, the Speaker House of Representatives.

That is number three and four citizens respectively who have official relationship to sit down with the President and share views with him on how to carry on with government activities, while he is on sojourn abroad. You also notice that other people like Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Chief Bisi Akande are people who have personal relationship with the President. They have found themselves in London and decided to spend time with him. But for us as a party, we don't see any need to, because we have not heard that the National Assembly had visited the President or the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had visited the President. So, I don't know why Nigerians should expect us as a party to visit the President. We need to understand this, that no institution has visited apart from those with the responsibility to do so regarding their official role.

Does that mean that there is no member of the National Working Committee of the party that has personal relationship with Buhari?

I made it clear to you that the Senate President did not travel to see the President as a representative of the institution of the National

Assembly. There was nothing they said that suggested that the Speaker and the Senate President went to see the President as representatives of the National Assembly. The answer is an emphatic no. I want to repeat that the party has not seen the need to visit and if you ask why any member of the national leadership of the party has not visited then you need to speak to that person. I speak for the party as an institution.

What then is the party's reaction to the calls by some Nigerians that Buhari should resign on health ground?

I'm not aware of any call by anyone for the President to resign. Indeed, I see no reason for that. The President is on vacation and he wrote to the National Assembly that he needed some days to run further tests and to rest. I believe that is not unusual considering the age of the President. Besides, there is no vacuum as the Acting President is doing his job well, and so far, there is no cause for concern.

Read More

I’ll run in 2019, if… – Tinubu

All Progressives Congress, APC, leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has said that he could contest for a political office in the near future including the Presidency whenever the right opportunity presents itself.

Tinubu spoke on the sidelines of last weekend's swearing-in of Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, in Akure, even as he chastised public criticisms of the management of the health condition of President Muhammadu Buhari.

He urged Nigerians to put aside disbelief and pray for the continued good health of the president.

Tinubu, who witnessed the inauguration of his onetime protégé, who he ironically fell out with last year, also dismissed insinuations of squabbling in the leadership of the APC.

Asked by reporters at the inauguration ground the possibility of seeking political office, including the Presidency, he said: "You see, there is nothing wrong with such ambition. It depends on the timing and the environment and what political leadership dictates.

''I will not brush aside such an aspiration….Maybe as a senator, maybe as a president, you cannot rule it out.

''How can I rule such a thing out? The opportunity to serve my country. But you only do that when there is vacancy."

He alluded to President Buhari's several attempts at the presidency before finally winning elections into that office in 2015.

"It has been historical, even, that Buhari tried first, second, third, and fourth before he got it. Resilience, determination, and clarity of purpose," he said.

Speaking on the health condition of the President, Tinubu said Buhari had been very honest in disclosing that he needed medical attention.

He said: "An honest man disclosed to you that he is going on leave, he is going to have medical check-up, he has disclosed that he needed more time.

''He has told us honestly that he needed medical attention. What his doctors will discuss after that is subject to experts, which should not be discussed until he is ready to disclose it. He told us that he cannot return now, what else do you want him to do?"

Tinubu advised Nigerians to pray for the President, insisting that President Buhari was alive and healthy.

"Only God gives life, and only God can take it. The man that I have seen is well, alive. We should promote welfare, praying for the well being of our leaders,'' he said.

He also spoke about the ruling APC, saying there was no rift whatsoever among its leaders, and accused the media of concocting stories to suggest the contrary.

Tinubu fell out with Akeredolu in the run-up to Ondo governorship election, but his presence at the inauguration could mean that the differences between both men have been put aside.

He played crucial roles in mobilising votes for President Buhari, first at the APC presidential primaries and later at the election proper.

Tinubu, a Third Republic senator, who then won the Lagos Central senatorial election with over one million votes, had to cede the slot of Vice-President to Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, who served as Attorney General of Lagos State when he (Tinubu) was governor between 1999 and 2007. His action was upon public concern of a Muslim - Muslim ticket that the pair of Buhari and Tinubu could have meant.

Since he left the Alausa Round House in 2007, Tinubu has not aspired for any elective office. Rather, he has helped to mobilise for his many political disciples to win elections.

Read More

Residents Tie Tortoise in Front of Building To Scare Away PHCN Workers [PHOTO]

   

    Nigerians are amazing people who always try to find ingenious means to get out of difficult situations. Several times, they have come up with creative, yet hilarious ways of getting out of trouble or even avoiding trouble.

    Recently, an official from the Ibadan Electric Distribution Company, visited an area where he spotted a tortoise attached to a power pole with a red cloth.

    It is believed that the animal was some kind of ‘juju’ that was designed to scare anyone away from attempting to climb up or even dare to cut off power supply.

    In a tweet shared on the Ibadan Electric Distribution Company (IBEDC) twitter handle, they wrote: “Lol, some Nigerians will do anything to avoid paying bills. As seen in Oyo state. Have a great week!”


    See photo:

  
    

Read More

Fayose: Why I Attended Akeredolu's Inauguration

       Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose, said on Friday said that he attended the inauguration of Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo for Yoruba unity.

    Fayose, a prominent member and governors' forum chairman of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said this in a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Idowu Adelusi, in Ado-Ekiti.

    He said that he could not have done otherwise because the unity of Yoruba people was too important for anybody to play politics with.

    "I see nothing wrong in attending the inauguration of an APC person in neighbouring Ondo State.

    "Being a leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) should not stop me from attending the inauguration of an All Progressives Congress (APC) governor."

    According to him, such an occasion is a national one that well-meaning people should identify with.

   

    "This is a Nigerian affair; when a governor is sworn in, we have to support him; we are talking of regional integration and unity here; Akeredolu is already one of us by virtue of his new position.

    "We have to support him since electioneering has come and gone and a winner has emerged, and we have to work together in the spirit of the people of our region.

    "We cannot play politics with the welfare of the people of our region; we have to support Akeredolu to make the difference.

    'This is a matter of the Yoruba nation and after Nigeria, Yoruba nation comes first; we don't need to play politics with the welfare of Yoruba people."

    He advised that his actions in recent times should not be mistaken for an attempt by him to dump his party, the PDP, insisting that nothing of such was in the offing.

    'How can I join the APC? As you already know, I am the main issue of the APC.

    'They don't have my size. They are wearing `babaringa' but they don't have the size of my cloth,' he said.
    

Read More

What's Your Take On Prostitution In NIgeria? | Pulse TV Vox Pop

Read More

Buhari’s Ex-Physician, Prof Sadiq Wali Speaks On His Health, Medical Extension

   

    The former Chief Physician to President Muhammadu Buhari, Professor Sadiq Suleiman Wali has opened up on the president's health status and need for medical extension.

    Professor Wali, 76, who was also Chief Physician to other four former heads of state, namely General Ibrahim Babangida, Chief Ernest Shonekan, the late General Sani Abacha and General Abdulsalami Abubakar in an interview with DailyTrust said medical extension is ethical between doctors and patients relation..

    He said: “President Buhari regularly went for checkups, except for the period of 1985 to 1988 when he was detained.

    “As for the recent extensions requested for by the president on the recommendation of his doctors, it is important to understand the principle guiding the relationship between doctors and patients.

  

    “There are four ethical principles, namely: Autonomy, where a doctor has to explain any action he intends to take with its advantage and disadvantage, possible harms and benefits. The patient has the right to accept or reject the recommendations. Then there is Beneficence, where all actions and procedures should be of benefit to the patient. In the case of Malfeasance, it’s ‘do no harm’. Then there is Justice, when benefit to the patient and community should be assessed. If there is danger to the community, the doctor can override the wishes of the patient like Lassa fever, Ebola disease and so on. In such cases, the doctor is obliged to report to appropriate health authorities”.

    He adviced that Nigerian should be patient, sympathize with the president, and pray for his early return home.

    The acting president is working very hard and governance has continued smoothly.

    Professor Wali also enjoyed President Muhammadu Buhari to be patient, and accept his doctor’s advice, noting the overwhelming support he enjoys.
    

Read More

Osinbajo Orders Police IG, Idris To Halt Southern Kaduna Killings

    Days after Acting President Yemi Osinbajo summoned the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris to Aso Rock over the violence in Southern Kaduna area, a total deployment of 15, 285 policemen are now being put in place by the Nigeria Police Force.

    According to reports, Osinbajo met with Inspector-General Ibrahim Idris towards the end of the week after the recent resurgence of violence in the area.

    One presidency source said the acting president asked why despite the security measures put in place and with the level of attention given to the area, the recent resurgence of violence resulting in the deaths of 21 persons still occurred.

  

    “Acting President Yemi Osinbajo summoned the IGP to the Presidential Villa to find out what the police was doing to arrest the situation and to also issue further directives on restoring law and order to the affected communities,” a source told Premium Times.

    “The immediate outcome of the IGP’s meeting with the Acting President was the intensification and adoption of a set of additional security measures that would help contain the situation.

    “Besides, deploying over 15000 cops to the area, eighteen Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) and a unit of Belarus-trained police Special Forces, the police high command has now concluded arrangements for the establishment of a new Police Squadron in Kafanchan, Kaduna, as part of broad measures adopted to curb the violence.

    “The police, in addition, have now increased helicopter surveillance in the entire area to prevent a recurrence of violence in the communities.”
    

RemmyAlex, Yesterday at 7:37 PM
#1

Read More

End Of The Road!! About 1,300 Boko Haram Members Surrender To Nigerian Security

 

       In January, 2017 alone, more than one thousand members of radical Islamist sect, Boko Haram, surrendered to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), Channels Television is reporting.

The terrorists who have been repeatedly annihilated by the Nigerian Army in series of reprisal and ambush attacks, have been depleted in recent months, and the report about their surrender may be signalling an end to insurgency in Nigeria.

Sanusi Abdullahi, head of the JTF crew, informed the defence chiefs from Lake Chad Basin Authority in Abuja, Nigeria’s federal capital while imploring countries which were affected by terrorism to ensure stability and peace in their areas.

This news is also coming on the heels of a report by the Nigerian Air Force that Boko Haram terrorists’ vehicle mounted were on Friday, February 24, destroyed with anti-aircraft gun in Borno state.

The Air Force made this known in a press release on Saturday, February 25, which was accompanied by a video.

“The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) fighter jets yesterday successfully intercepted a group of Boko Haram Terrorists (BHT) moving in an Hilux vehicle mounted with anti-aircraft gun.

“The armed vehicle was sighted at Talala in Northern Borno by an Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft on patrol, which then called for strike by combat platform,” the statement read in part.

Read More

URIEL EXPOSES HER BOOBS IN THE JACUZZI (HOT TUB) - BIG BROTHER NAIJA [DA...

URIEL EXPOSES HER BOOBS IN THE JACUZZI (HOT TUB) - BIG BROTHER NAIJA [DAY 17 ] 24/7 Updates

Read More

Mr Ibu visits Big Brother Naija house...recounts when he tried to commit suicide in 1997

Comic actor John Okafor aka Mr Ibu visited the Big Brother Naija housemates this evening, where he spent sometime chatting with them and also had a diary session where he talked about the time in 1997 when he nearly committed suicide...watch the video and read the full story after the cut...

Read More

Meet this guy who has given up his life to look like and work for Cristiano Ronaldo (photos)

Oh yes, the world's most popular sportsman, Cristiano Ronaldo, has a body double, and he appears at occasions for the Real Madrid superstar more often than you realize.

Diego Davila, Ronaldo's body double, has revealed in a new interview he gave up his life to work for the former Manchester United footballer saying living another person's life isn't easy.

 

 'I have to take care of my body a lot. He is a world-class athlete and has incredible physical qualities. I have to have my body as similar as possible to his all the time, although there are obvious differences due to the genetics.' Diego told Brazilian website UOL Esporte on Sunday.

I have a haircut with his personal hairstyle, Miguel, and I always have to have my hair exactly the same as his.'

'My relationship with Cristiano is very good. It’s true that at the beginning of the work we were more distant, perhaps because of shyness, but over time we got to know each other and I can say that Cristiano is a lovely person. It’s a huge pleasure to work with him. He likes to be with me and I with him. He’s an incredible person.'

More photos below...

Read More