HIGHLIGHT
The Nigeria Governors’ Forum could mandate a powerful delegation to travel to London for the purpose of checking on the recuperating President Buhari.
There are strong indications that the Nigeria Governors’ Forum may send some governors to the United Kingdom to visit President Muhammadu Buhari, except the President returns home between now and next week.
Saturday PUNCH learnt that the plan to send a delegation to the President was part of the discussion at the last governors’ meeting in Abuja, which ended in the early hours of Thursday.
An impeccable source at the meeting, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the governors also decided to send a goodwill message to the President’s family in Nigeria.
The source, however, hinted that the President might return home very soon based on the information available to the governors.
He explained that representatives of the Governors’ Forum would have embarked on the UK trip immediately but for the information pointing towards the President’s return anytime from now.
A governor, who was at the meeting, who also spoke with one of our correspondents on condition of anonymity, said that the decision was taken at the governors meeting in Abuja on Thursday night.
He said the governors supported the idea after they were informed about the visit of the leadership of the National Assembly to the President during the week.
He said, “We will visit the President if he doesn’t come back in the next one week. We decided to do this after the leaders of the National Assembly led by the President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki visited the President.
“It was a decision supported by all of us, including members of the Peoples Democratic Party, which is the main opposition party in the country.”
Buhari had few weeks ago, written to the Senate to inform the legislators that he would proceed on medical vacation for 10 days and that Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo would act on his behalf as President during his absence.
The President was expected to resume work on Monday, February 6, 2017, but he again wrote a letter to the National Assembly a day before, informing the lawmakers that he needed to extend his leave in order to complete and get the results of some tests recommended by his doctors.
Since Buhari’s departure, some chieftains of the ruling All Progressives Congress have been paying visits to him at the Abuja House in London, UK. Such APC chieftains include: Senate President Bukola Saraki; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara; Senate Leader, Ahmed Lawan; Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun; a national leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu; and former interim National Chairman of the APC, Chief Bisi Akande.
However, some Peoples Democratic Party federal lawmakers have questioned the exclusion of opposition members in the National Assembly delegation that recently paid Buhari a visit in London.
The opposition lawmakers expressed disappointment with the exclusion of PDP members in the delegation even as one of the party’s members – Ike Ekweremadu – is the Deputy Senate President.
When one of Punch correspondents sought to know if governors elected on the platform of the PDP would be willing to send representatives to the UK to visit the President, its Chairman, Governor Ayo Fayose, said there was nothing wrong in visiting the President.
