For some politicians of the highest echelon in the country, the newest happening and profi table place to visit now is London. In fact, you can compare their visit there to a pilgrimage of some sort, considering the rush and importance the visitors attached to the visit. Why London? Well, that’s the new residence, temporarily though, of President Muhammadu Buhari, who has spent about 70 days there recuperating from an illness, which nature has not been revealed. First to go on the visit was Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, who spent about an hour discussing wide ranging national issues with the President in Abuja House in London. Of course, Osinbajo’s visit became one among many others that soon closely followed his.
Th e next plane of visitors comprised some chieftains of the All Progressives Congress(APC), including its chairman, Mr. John Odige-Oyegun; Governors Rochas Okorocha (Imo state), Nasir El-Rufa’i (Kaduna State), Yahaya Bello (Kogi state) and UmaruTanko al-Makura (Nasarawa state) and the Minister of Transport, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi. Almost immediately after their visit, another was hurriedly organised for members of the Nigeria Governors Forum, led by its chairman, Governor Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara state.
He was joined by governors Dave Umahi (Ebonyi state), Umar Ganduje (Kano state), Kashim Shettima (Borno state), Samuel Ortom (Benue state), Udom Emmanuel (Akwa Ibom state) and Abiola Ajimobi (Oyo state). Asked why Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti state and his Rivers state counterpart were not part of the delegation, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Shehu Garba, said the selection was done by the governors forum and not the federal government.
But, as my friend, Denja Yakuq of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), succinctly put it, the infantile loud mouth should have also joined the London visitors so he can hasten his promised suicide now that the most important Nigerian has recovered from what he termed as “life support.” Curiously, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, who announced the visits, said he did not know who was sponsoring the many and, of course, costly trips to the new residence of his principal. On why the Presidency deems the visits important, Adesina said now is the best for the President to welcome visitors as the reports of his impressive recovery from his illness occupy the media. “Instead of being curious, it should be the right time for the visit.
When somebody has recovered or something has happened, it’s in our culture to visit such a person. So, this is the right time to visit the president because the news is that he is recovering and recovering well,” he said. Asked why members of the media were not involved in the trips, Adesina’s reply became even more cynical.
Th ough Adesina didn’t say how it would cost the nation by the time pilgrims ended their visit to London, he was quick to state that the journalists were not made part of the pilgrimage in order to savethe nation money. Whether the reason given by Adesina for the non-inclusion of journalists in the trip is right or otherwise can be better imagined than answered. And one only needs to look at the caliber of the visitors to the President in London and the arrangement of their one-day travel to do so. Are the visits to see the recuperating President, who’ll soon be back to the country soon as we’re made to believe, necessary?
Th e answer can be varied, depending on which side of the economic and political divide you fall. But a fact that goes without any argument is that, irrespective of how curious Nigerians were or still are with regards to the state of health of the President and how quickly and well he recuperates, Buhari will defi nitely do better without the visits. And so will the public purse. If the President’s handlers are convinced that the visits are necessary for whatever reason, they should allow the visits to hold at the Presidential Villa in Abuja so that some of us who can’t aff ord the ticket to London can see the President.
