Fellow Nigerians, congratulations on the arrival of our honey President Muhammadu Buhari from a prolonged medical vacation. Let’s all enhance our voices as well as give cheers God for performing what the President himself described equally a miracle. “I’ve never been this sick,” the President had repeatedly told well-wishers. Before his abrupt divergence from Abuja House, the official residence of Nigeria’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, events were getting crude oil as well as embarrassing equally about aggrieved Nigerians had started making a willow cabin at his gate, raking as well as ranting almost the President’s determination to seek medical succour abroad piece the province of healthcare dorsum habitation remains pitiably scandalous.
It was a nifty relief to most Nigerians when tidings came from the Presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina, that his boss was finally on his agency home. To some, it sounded likewise goodness to live true. Such tales had turned into disappointment on several occasions inward the past. Something unusual happened on the flush of the President’s divergence from England. President Buhari was seen sitting amongst the General Overseer of The Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, as well as had patently received a gift of about Christian literature. It seemed the General Overseer had come upward to sanctify the President’s journeying as well as it was goodness to see this symbolic gesture of religious tolerance.
The arrival of President Buhari inward Abuja was triumphant! The giddiness on display yesteryear family, friends, associates as well as fans was remarkable. Everybody was excited, joyous as well as relieved to cause got him dorsum at habitation later what seemed an eternity.
It had been announced that the President would brand a national broadcast 2 days later his return. This generated a lot of involvement as well as expectation as well as elicited speculations ranging from the sublime to the mundane. Many expected the President to give an American style, State of the Nation, address piece others idea he was going to cause got a bow yesteryear resigning as well as retiring to his habitation town of Daura, Katsina State, later handing the baton to his Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo. That latter permutation was far from reality as well as dead on arrival for i major reason. Whilst the President as well as his Vice President may cause got formed a perfect synergy as well as a reasonable bond exists betwixt them, members of the President’s inner cabinet make non subscribe to this unity of purpose as well as it reflects clearly inward their trunk language.
We debated these wild speculations inward our editorial coming together at Arise News lastly Sunday. By the way, delight discover fourth dimension to lookout adult man us on DSTV 416, every Sun from 6-7pm. Our squad of Reuben Abati, Wale Olaleye, Prisca Ndu, Yemi Adamolekun as well as yours really was carefully assembled yesteryear the Chairman of Leaders & Company, Nduka Obaigbena. We are e'er create to cause got yous through the labyrinth of political as well as economical affairs globally. Our cause got was that President Buhari would seize the occasion of that broadcast to brand monumental pronouncements almost his reform plans for our long-suffering country. We hoped he would lay bare his plans for moving Nigeria frontwards positively. We slept exclusively later setting our alarms to wake us upward precisely earlier 7am to monitor the Presidential broadcast. What did nosotros larn eventually? The spoken communication was scanty as well as brusk on concrete plans. In fact, it would live right to telephone telephone it an anti-climax. Many people were disappointed that they woke upward early on to lookout adult man a badly packaged broadcast. The President’s speech-writers could cause got done much improve amongst a brusk but crisp message to Nigerians. Instead, they prepared a mumbo-jumbo. I was non impressed. But, I didn’t know who to blame. Who supplied the content as well as who manufactured the script that President Buhari read? The content as well as the art-form should cause got blended good but this was non the case.
I idea the President should cause got exposed it all. At his age, at that spot is goose egg to a greater extent than to fearfulness or hide. He should cause got told his captive audience everything almost his unfortunate ill-health. The primary argue most Nigerians were upset or angry was the fact that the President did non think it gibe to tell Nigerians what was incorrect amongst him as well as the handling he was receiving from UK Doctors which, necessitated his endless sojourn inward the Queen’s land.
As if this was non bad enough, nosotros were informed yesteryear the Villa that the President was going to live operating from habitation inward the meantime. Fair enough. I never expected somebody who has been that sick to provide to locomote instantly. It would live tantamount to callousness for anyone to shove the President dorsum to role without proper recuperation. But it seemed about people were desperately anxious to make precisely that. As early on equally 9am, a alphabetic quality was transmitted to the National Assembly announcing the President’s provide to Nigeria as well as his immediate resumption of total Presidential duties. Fine. If the President felt stiff plenty as well as create to cause got on the herculean project of running i of the largest as well as most complicated nations inward Africa, so live it.
But it wasn’t going to live that simple! Before I went to bed that fateful night, tidings reached me inward Republic of Ghana of a press release offering a spurious explanation for the President working from home, a totally unnecessary thing to do. At this hateful solar daytime as well as age, anyone has the liberty to locomote from anywhere, habitation or abroad. Technology has changed the agency nosotros make things. H5N1 lot is at nowadays done as well as achieved at the touching of a button. The President did non demand to dignify the busybodies who were prying into his affairs amongst whatsoever response. The bazooka released yesteryear a fundamental fellow member of his media squad was a total faux pas. Lord cause got mercy, the disputation that rodents sacked the President from his role is the worst world relations nightmarish blunder I cause got ever witnessed. As a unusual friend told me, “even if it was truthful that such happened, it was non inward the identify of whatsoever Presidential aide to let on such so brazenly.” Anyway. It happened, life must displace on fifty-fifty though nosotros at nowadays cause got to live amongst the attendant jokes.
I promised about friends I volition endeavor to write the spoken communication I idea the President should cause got read inward representative of similar futurity recurrence. It is also our responsibleness to instruct our leaders almost modern ways of governance instead of lamenting without showing the way. We can’t blame them if nosotros think they don’t know, keeping mute, instead of acting as well as transferring our ain experience as well as exposure to them. I at nowadays create my spoken communication had I been inward President Buhari’s shoes. Let me warn that the spoken communication is fictional as well as exclusively a figment of my imagination. Any similarity or resemblance to whatsoever existent life province of affairs is simply coincidental:
“Fellow Nigerians, goodness morning. It gives me nifty pleasance to live live to address yous again. What I went through inward the yesteryear few months was so terrible that I idea I would croak but your form prayers brought me dorsum alive. I sincerely give cheers God Almighty for giving me a novel lease of life as well as about other run a peril to serve yous better. I unreservedly offering my sincere apologies for my long absences but I’m certain yous volition concur that it was due to circumstances beyond my control.
I must explicate my pitiable predicament i time as well as for all. There is a Yoruba maxim which says, “a human cannot shroud his trunk from those who volition bury him.” As your President, I’m your leader as well as also your retainer at the same time. H5N1 truthful leader must see himself equally a retainer of the people. It is thence incumbent on me to allow yous know as well as appreciate the wellness challenges I cause got suffered lately. Trouble started years dorsum when I was diagnosed amongst prostate cancer. Although deeply troubled initially, I was before long reassured yesteryear my doctors that mine had been detected early on as well as was non malignant. I tried to follow the prescribed medical regime amongst stiff champaign of written report I am reputed for, as well as this has kept me going since then.
My immature human Nigerians, permit me to say that when it rains, it pours. I did non create out for what unfolded later I miraculously won the Presidential election of 2015. I was fully create to locomote total boom knowing the extent of havoc the previous PDP regime had wreaked on our country. However, what I met was far worse than what I ever imagined. Nigeria was inward a bigger mess as well as the project required total strength, physical as well as psychological. Unfortunately, I before long relapsed into about other bout of ill-health which deprived me of my total stamina to tackle the menace as well as scourge foisted on our province yesteryear previous administrations. I was quite alarmed when my doctors said that my carbohydrate grade had risen due to my abysmal diabetic history as well as at nowadays needed to live managed as well as controlled really delicately. I was told at that spot were few experts inward the world to create out amongst my virulent type of diabetes as well as I had no selection but to bow to the wishing of God.
As yous may recollect, I had problems amongst my ears later suffering an infection which badly affected my hearing. This was speedily corrected yesteryear specialists but I was constrained to wearable hearing aids. However, that turned out to live the simplest of my problems. My battle amongst hypotension was before long to almost eat me. Unlike most people amongst hypertension, I had issues amongst depression blood pressure, non high. Combining diabetes amongst hypotension tin live really deadly. Simply put, that was my case. You at nowadays know what I was dealing amongst as well as why I’ve been away. It was never a fancy trip but a serious state of war to remain alive. I’m grateful to God that I’m live to tell the story. Those who specialise inward spreading rumours cause got concocted their ain simulated stories but this is the whole truth!
My honey Brothers as well as Sisters, it is heart-warming to live dorsum habitation later crossing the valley of the shadow of death. Whilst away, I followed events at habitation really closely. I must give cheers my able Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo as well as our entire squad for their feel of dedication as well as acts of loyalty. I’m gladdened that they kept the province together despite threats from dissimilar sections as well as segments of our society. I was deeply troubled to see how about people tried to campaign disaffection as well as laid our patch ablaze when dialogue, meaningful dialogue, tin resolve most of our differences. I intend to engage every component of Nigeria inward dialogue as well as volition encourage everyone to bring together hands amongst me inward the procedure of reconciling every i of our people. We stand upward to gain to a greater extent than inward unity than inward strife.
Permit me to reveal a undercover I had kept for a long time. The erstwhile leader of Biafra, Chief Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, visited me i time inward Daura to hash out the unity of Nigeria. He was clearly troubled as well as remorseful that Nigeria had to become through i of the deadliest internecine wars inward Africa at his behest. We both prayed at the goal of our coming together that such tragedy volition never befall our province again. Some of those beating the drums of state of war as well as fanning the embers of disunity may non cause got been born at that fourth dimension or they were likewise immature to encompass the destruction suffered yesteryear innocent people, normally the poor of the earth, during wars. My regime volition make everything possible to appease the aggrieved as well as brand certain nosotros all locomote along to live inward harmony.
The clamour for restructuring has reached an all-time high. I concur that the fourth dimension has come upward to make something almost it. With the co-operation of the National Assembly, I volition before long laid the mechanism inward displace to create out amongst this all-important national issue. We tin no longer afford to pretend that our introduce structures are perfectly inward order. No Nigerian should experience similar an alien inward his ain country. It is natural for people to larn angry as well as vehement when they experience marginalised. This anomalous province of affairs must live addressed as well as corrected.
I volition locomote closely amongst my Vice President inward the days ahead to fine-tune our economy. Without a stiff economy, nosotros cannot leave of absence of the doldrums. We cause got challenges on several fronts but they are all surmountable. As a retired regular army General, it is my wishing to secure lives as well as properties yesteryear empowering as well as inspiring our men as well as women of the safety forces. Our robust plans inward this regard volition live unfolded soon.
May God bless Nigeria…”
Hmmm, seems my imagination ran riot for a bit!!!