President Buhari’s indefinite medical trip wrong, says poll

President Muhammadu Buhari’s indefinite medical travel to London, United Kingdom is ill-advised, the latest Guardian Poll has shown.

Fifty-seven per cent of respondents to a poll on The Guardian website between May 12 and May 14, said it was inappropriate for the President to travel indefinitely. Forty-three per cent, however, backed Buhari’s latest medical travel, noting that there was nothing to worry about.

Buhari left Nigeria for London on May 7, 2017 for a “medical follow-up” and the length of his stay will only “be determined by the doctors.”

He was also in the same location between January 19 and March 10 this year to “undergo routine medical check-ups” during a short holiday. On his return, he hinted at the possibility of his going back for more treatment and acknowledged that he was terribly sick but did not disclose the nature of his ailment.

But the presidency insisted there was nothing to worry about in spite of his absence from the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meetings and other state functions.

Just as the case when he travelled in January, rumours of his health deteriorating heightened, and more mischievously, of his death were circulated on social media and fake news website, www.tv-bbc.com.

Reacting on Sunday to the speculations, his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, said: “Nothing unpleasant has happened to the President.

“If you have received this information on WhatsApp or Facebook, disregard it because it is a plain lie spread by vested interests to create panic.”