Hadjia Buhari arrives in London tomorrow to pay another visit to her ailing husband

PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari's wife Hadjia Aisha Buhari will arrive in the UK tomorrow to visit her sick husband who has been receiving treatment at a London hospital since leaving Nigeria on May 7.

Over the last year, President Buhari has been suffering from ill health and earlier this year, spent several months in London before his latest return trip. Amid reports that his situation is deteriorating, his wife has decided to pay him another visit and left Abuja last night but will have a stopover in Addis Abba, the Ethiopian capital, before continuing her journey to London.

This will be the second time Hadjia Buhari would be visiting her ailing husband since he embarked on his second medical vacation of the year close to 60 days ago. Suleiman Haruna, Hadjia Buhari's spokesman said the president’s wife would use the opportunity of her latest visit to convey the best wishes of Nigerians and their prayers to her husband.

He added that Hadjia Buhari’s stopover in Addis Abba will afford her the opportunity to attend a meeting of the Organisation of African First Ladies Against HIV/AIDS which will hold today. On May 30, Hadjia Buhari travelled to London to join her husband, three weeks after he embarked on his latest medical vacation.

Mr Haruna said: “She is expected to have a stopover at Addis Ababa, to make a symbolic appearance at the meeting of the Organisation of African First Ladies Against HIV/AIDS on Monday, July 3, 2017. She will join other members to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the organisation and use the opportunity to restate the voting rights of Nigeria in the upcoming elections of the organisation and will continue her journey to the United Kingdom on Tuesday, July 4, 2017.”

According to Hadjia Buhari, the president would soon return to join Nigerians as he was recuperating fast. At the moment, there are conflicting reports about the state of the president's health, with the opposition Peoples Democratic Party claiming he is in a coma and unable to speak coherently.

Meanwhile, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) said it had no immediate plans to send any delegation to visit President Buhari in London. Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi,  the party's national publicity secretary explained that the APC was currently pre-occupied with keeping the nation running in line with the president’s agenda than with photo-opportunities.

Mallam Abdullahi added: “We never sent a delegation to him before, so why should we send a delegation to him now, to achieve what? What we are doing as a party is to keep the country running while he is away, so what will our going there do for him? Are we doctors or nurses?”