We have been waiting for 50 days to hear from our president. We have been kept in the dark with no clue as to his state of health and mind. We were not spoken to by president Muhammadu Buhari for the entire period and we expectedly became very anxious. Tomorrow, Monday, except the Senate intervenes, Buhari will resume leadership of our great and complex nation in dire times.
To this effect, the singular statements of president Buhari upon his return, must be scrutinized as our only publicly accessible record to access his state of mental wellbeing and capacity to rule Nigeria.
Quoting the BBC:
“But as his address went on the president appeared to ramble, referring to the importance of technology and education. He even urged Nigerians not to self-medicate.”
Below is a transcript of what President Buhari said. I have only been able to understand about two lines, one on the Acting president’s youth and intelligence, and a line on the value of education, and this gives me great concern and reason to protest for the Senate to delay his resumption until his mental clarity and aptitude for the task can be medically ascertained. 180 million lives and possible deaths are potentially in the hands of the leader.
I invite well-meaning members of the public to attempt to interpret the statements and message by Buhari as quoted below. And if this cannot be achieved, I strongly urge the Nigerian Senate to for once do their duty and delay Buhari’s resumption confirmation.
Buhari on March 10th 2017, according to media transcript:
“When it was getting to Christmas, I told the Vice President, I know he has got a church therefore he has to go home. I said Ok let us do it turn by turn, you go for Christmas and the New Year and when you come back I will go. He said yes. I suspected he didn’t go home, when he came back. I said ok it will be my turn in some months time. This time around I said we better do the same.
“I didn’t know he had the same principles, but for me I feel that I was a little more tired than I probably was in last eighteen months. Whatever the case, I am very grateful that Nigerians are appreciative of what all of us are doing as a group. I am very pleased with them.
“I am cost conscious and I think the VP knows about the expenditure. So please if you were clever enough reroute your way, stay on your official duties either from US back to Nigeria.
“It was a battle please don’t be too upset
“I am very conscious of the economy. I have rested as much as humanly possible, I have received I think the best of treatment I could receive. I couldn’t recall being so sick since I was a young man, including the military with its ups and downs. I found out that technology is going so fast that if you have a lot of confidence you better keep it because you need it.
“Blood transfusions, going to the laboratories, and so on and so forth, but I am very pleased that we, when I say we, I mean the government and the people all over are trying to keep up with technology.
“I couldn’t recall when last I had blood transfusion. I couldn’t recall honestly, I can say in my seventy years.
I couldn’t remember this drug that Nigerians take so much, very common.
“I think one of our terrible things is self drug administration. We have to trust our doctors more and trust ourselves more.
“Having said that I am pleased that I am back, I am pleased that the Vice President enjoyed this break and he has to do much more this time around. Youth and intellect is squarely behind him, age and purely military experience is behind me.
“Continue to do the work, Nigeria will continue whether we are here or not and my single most important advise is take education of everybody under your responsibility very seriously, your children our relatives, our constituencies, education, education education. We must do more on education. I deliberately came back towards the weekend, so that the Vice President will continue and I will continue to rest. Thank You very much.”
Is he fit to rule 180 million Nigerians north and south? If he is not fit to rule, he is vulnerable to be manipulated and used by the cabal for their private goals. Nigeria cannot take this risk.
May God deliver the president and our great nation.
Dr. Peregrino Brimah; @EveryNigerian
