President
Muhammadu Buhari on Friday praised his deputy, Yemi Osinbajo, for the efforts
at leading the country, while he (Mr. Buhari) was away on medical vacation.
The president, at a meeting with some state
governors, then taunted protesters who gathered in London to demand his return
to work or resignation.
“The effort by the vice president is
commendable,” said Mr. Buhari, when he hosted governors on Friday. “He used his
intellect to run all over the place. I was seeing him 24 hours on NTA.”
Mr. Buhari returned to Nigeria last Saturday
and returned to duties as president the following Monday. He had travelled to
London, the United Kingdom, since May 7 to treat an undisclosed ailment.
While the president was away, Mr. Osinbajo led
Nigeria in acting capacity and earned praises for the leadership he displayed.
“Our acting president,” said Simon Lalong,
Plateau State Governor, at the meeting, “we must commend him.”
“In the absence of the president, there was not
vacuum because the acting president filled in the gap and did his best up to
this moment and showed absolute loyalty both to the nation and Mr President.”
He, however said since Mr. Buhari’s return
“everything is taking shape again.”
“This
is not to say the acting president was not doing well.”
The president also extended appreciation to
Nigerians who prayed for his recovery.
“I’m very happy with the national prayers. It
was very covered and reported, across religions and ethnicity, (that) people
were praying (for my recovery),” he said.
He said his morale had been “raised greatly” by
the “love shown to him”
Mr. Buhari spent 103 days in London. Before his
arrival, there had been protests in Abuja and London, asking him to return to
work as Nigeria’s president or resign. He also noted this today, subtly mocking
Nigerians, who staged protest at the Abuja House where he stayed in London.
He said: “In fact some groups in London came
and sang the national anthem and asked that I should go back home. Indeed, I
have come back home. I hope those who went there are not stuck there…those that
are stuck there with the Brexit, I hope they have weighed the implications that
it won’t affect them, including those that have properties there, those who are
not paying tax there.
“I hope when they sell their properties, there
they will bring some of the money here. We need it very badly here.”
- Premium Times
No comments:
Post a Comment