Presidential aides were on Friday put on standby over the
imminent return of President Muhammadu Buhari from London, United
Kingdom.
Buhari, who left Nigeria on January 19, was initially
scheduled to return to the country last Sunday in preparation for
resumption to office last Monday.
However, the Special Adviser to
the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, later issued a
statement announcing that Buhari had notified the National Assembly of
his decision to extend his vacation.
Adesina had attributed the
extension to the need for the President to wait behind and receive the
results of medical tests which he had undergone on the advice of his
doctors.
Sources at the Presidential Villa, Abuja told one of our
correspondents on Friday that Buhari was being expected this weekend.
The sources said that presidential aides and officials of the Protocol
Unit, as well as security operatives, had been put on the alert over the
President’s imminent arrival.
One of the sources said, “The
President is expected back this weekend. We are expecting him to return
either on Saturday or Sunday.
“As of now, we are not sure of the time of his arrival yet. The Protocol Unit will confirm that to us later.”
Another
official said if the President would return by Saturday afternoon, his
arrival time would be clear by the (Saturday) morning.
Amidst
growing concern that Buhari had extended his vacation indefinitely as
his new resumption date was not included in his latest letter to the
National Assembly, Adesina had during the week, said the President would
return sooner than expected.
“In a communication to the National
Assembly, the President did not disclose when he is coming back but the
President may be coming back sooner than people think,” the
presidential spokesman had told a television station.
Atiku urges Nigerians to pray for President
Meanwhile, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has urged Nigerians of all faiths to pray for the President.
Atiku,
who is also a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, said the
President needs the prayers of all Nigerians at times like these.
This was contained in a press statement issued by his Media Office in Abuja on Friday.
Atiku was quoted as saying, “We deserve the care and support of one another in trying times.
“Each of us goes through times when we are not in top form. The last thing we need in such times is mockery or ill will.”
Prayers hold in Borno mosques for recovery
Imams
in about 350 Jumma’at mosques in Borno State on Friday led thousands of
worshippers in special prayers to wish President Buhari speedy
recovery. Special prayers were held in Maiduguri, Jere, Biu and other
parts of the state.
The prayers, which were conducted at the
request of the Borno State Governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima, were in
appreciation of President Buhari’s commitment to the fight against the
Boko Haram insurgency, which resulted in the liberation of many
communities and the return of relative peace to the state.
Although,
there are 542 Jumma’at mosques in the state, only about 350 of them
were estimated to be operating as residents of some highly populated
towns like Bama had yet to fully return home from internally displaced
persons’ camps.
The prayers were based on a request conveyed by
the Chief Imam of Borno State, Imam Ibrahim Ahmed, to all Imams of
functional Jumma’at mosques.
The Chief Imam mobilised fellow
Muslim clerics for prayers following letters addressed to him by
Governor Shettima. A similar letter was also sent to the Borno State
Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Bishop William Naga.
The
state Commissioner for Religious Affairs, Mustapha Fannarambe, signed
the two letters, titled, “Request for intensification of prayers for the
complete recovery of Mr. President.”
It was learnt that the
state’s chapter of CAN had also communicated with pastors to organise
similar prayers in all churches across the state during the Sunday’s
service.
APC women to organise National Prayer Summit
Worried
about Buhari’s state of health, women leaders in the APC are also
organising a National Prayer Summit for the President and the nation.
The prayer summit, being organised by the office of the APC Deputy National Women Leader, is to hold in Enugu.
The
APC Deputy National Women Leader, Chief Tina Adike, who disclosed this
to journalists in Owerri, Imo State, said that the non-denominational
prayer summit would also cut across all political parties.
Decrying
the unpleasant rumours making the rounds about the President, Adike
noted that death is not exclusive to elderly persons alone.
While
attributing the rumours about the health of the President to ignorance
of the provisions of the nation’s constitution, which she said the
President had adhered to, Adike said women in the country were hopeful
that if Nigerians were committed, patriotic and selfless, it would be
well with Nigeria. PFN urges Buhari to fix economy, stabilise currency
Meanwhile,
the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria has called on the administration
of President Buhari to inject life into the country by curbing inflation
and finding solutions to the problems affecting the economy, including
the rising foreign exchange.
A statement issued by the Director
(Media and Public Relations) of PFN, Simbo Olorunfemi, said the call was
part of resolutions taken during its just-concluded 14th Biennial
Conference held in Benin, Edo State.
He said, “The PFN is
concerned about the state of the Nigerian economy and the hardship being
experienced by citizens. It calls on the Federal Government to take
urgent steps to mitigate the pains of Nigerians, curb inflation, stem
the tide of unemployment and find solution to the exchange rate that has
eroded the value of the naira.
“A number of issues of concern to
the Church and of national interest were discussed at the conference
and the PFN resolved on the need for the Federal Government to live up
to its constitutional responsibility of securing lives and property,
especially in the face of terrorist activities by so-called herdsmen and
the recent killings in Southern Kaduna.”
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