Minister of Transportion, Rotimi Amaechi, yesterday assured Nigerians not to be worried over President Muhammadu Buhari’s health status, stressing that he (Buhari) “is fit enough” to stand for reelection.
Amaechi, who is also a former governor of Rivers State, said Buhari’s health status was not so serious enough to stop him from putting in one more term.
“If you look at the president since he came to the country, you will see there is a huge improvement,” Amaechi, said on Channels Television’s Hard Copy.
“He’s regaining his weight. This is a 74-year old man, he is no longer a 58-old man, he is not 50…he is not a young man.
Buhari left Nigeria on January 19 for London to “undergo routine medical check-ups” during a short holiday. He only returned on March 10 after an extended period of medical treatment. He also hinted at the possibility of him going back for more treatment.
But what Nigerians should be more worried about, Amaechi said, is his ability to provide good leadership and deliver on the campaign promises he made, which were just three, according to the former Rivers governor.
“He made three [campaign promises]. The rest are propagandas, social media propagandas,” he said.
When asked if he would support Buhari if he stands for re-election in 2019, Amaechi replied in affirmative. “I will advise that he should,” he said.
“The president is fit enough to govern and if he makes the decision to run again, if he does, I don’t think there is anything wrong in supporting him.”
In spite of Amaechi’s vote of confidence in Buhari’s health, there are still questions to be answered.
Recall that TheNewsGuru.com published reports of Buhari’s absence from the last couple of Federal Executive Council meetings usually held at the presidential villa, leaving Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to chair those meetings.
Moreover, it was reported that he was also missing the Juma’at prayer at Aso Villa mosque last Friday.
But the presidency insisted that there was no reason for Nigerians to panic. It said Buhari scale down his activities at the Nigerian seat of power on doctors’ advice.
“As eager as he is to be up and about, the President’s doctors have advised on his taking things slowly, as he fully recovers from the long period of treatment in the United Kingdom some weeks ago,” Buhari’s media aide Garba Shehu said.