•VP’s office fails to confirm his England itinerary

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

President Bola Tinubu earlier this week detailed Vice President Kashim Shettima to fly to London from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to check on ailing former Nigerian leader, Muhammadu Buhari, following reports that he was undergoing treatment in an undisclosed London hospital, THISDAY learnt yesterday.

Shettima had on the invitation of the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed Ali, attended the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Initiative (GLI) in the country’s capital last week, where  he used the opportunity to explore Ethiopia’s success in agriculture.

A reliable source told THISDAY that as soon as Tinubu received information that  Buhari had been admitted to the London hospital, the President, who was scheduled to travel to St. Lucia, called the Vice President, directing him to proceed to London to check on the former President and report back to him.

News had recently broken that former Buhari had fallen ill and was recuperating in the hospital.

But in response to the reports that Buhari was confined to an intensive care unit, his former Special Assistant on Digital Communications, Bashir Ahmad, last Thursday admitted that although Buhari was unwell, the 81-year-old former Nigerian leader was not in a bad condition. Besides,  he stated that Buhari was already on the path to full recovery.

He wrote on X: “In light of the recent media reports suggesting that former President Muhammadu Buhari is critically ill and has been admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), we find it necessary to set the record straight.

“It is true that former President Buhari is unwell and is currently receiving medical attention. However, contrary to the exaggerated claims circulating in the media, he is stable and responding well to treatment and we are optimistic about his full recovery.

“We appreciate the outpouring of prayers and goodwill from his supporters and well-wishers around the world. We continue to pray for his complete and speedy recovery.”

But Tinubu reportedly asked the Vice President to ascertain the former President’s condition and ensure that whatever support was needed to enhance his health was provided immediately.

The source stated that Shettima flew into London in the early hours of Monday, and spent time with Buhari, relaying Tinubu’s message to him and later connecting him with the Nigerian leader on phone.

The source said: “Vice President Kashim Shettima flew to London on Sunday night, arriving in the early hours of Monday. He visited the former President in the hospital and spent hours with him after delivering President Tinubu’s message of concern and wishes for a quick recovery.

“As a matter of fact, I think the Vice President connected both the President and his predecessor on a call before leaving the ailing former President. I am told he also visited former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar, who at the time was also in London recuperating.”

It was unclear why the visit was kept a secret, but when contacted about whether the visit took place and, if it did, why it was not made public, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications (Office of the Vice President), Stanley Nkwocha, confirmed that Shettima was in London, but said he could not confirm if he visited the two Nigerian leaders.

He insisted that the visit was a totally private one,  explaining that he wasn’t privy to his boss’ itinerary to England’s capital. However, he stated that although he wasn’t sure whether the Vice President visited anybody, he was aware that he (Shettima) returned to Nigeria from London last Monday.

He said: “ I do not know where you got your story from. I am just hearing about General Buhari and General Abdulsalam Abubakar’s visit from you. Anyway, yes, the VP was in London but on a purely private visit and came back to Nigeria the same Monday.

“And since it was a private visit which I was not privy to, his engagements or lack thereof would remain in the realm of speculation, and hence the publicising or not of such a visit cannot come up.”

Recall that the former President’s health was a recurring subject of national interest throughout his time in office, especially his notable medical trips to London, during which he spent a 104-day stretch abroad in one of the instances.

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