15 Sep 2008 |
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It just started as a rumour that President Umaru Musa Yarʼaduaʼs health condition was getting worse. For almost four days before he left the country to Saudi Arabia on what official Presidency Press Release said was ʽlesser Hajj tripʼ on August 20 this year, information available to the public was that Yardua was in a very critical condition that only members of his family, four German Doctors, his Physician and his CSO had access to him. There was never any inkling from the Presidency that Yarʼaduaʼs trip has anything to do with even a regular medical check up not to even talk of his widely believed worsening health situation. Sahara Reporters, an online news agency had reported that the President was going to the oil rich country of Saudi Arabia for medical attention. So were other Nigeria newspapers. It is on record that the belief that all is not well with the President was further confirmed by the cancellation of an earlier trip by him to Brazil despite the arrival of an advance team to the country. But by Saturday August 29, rumours had filled the Nigerian airwaves and newspapers that the President had a successful kidney transplant donated by one of his daughters. It is a well-known fact among Muslims that lesser Hajj can be performed within hours in a day. One then wonders why it will take the President of the most populous nation in Africa almost three weeks in Saudi Arabia performing the Umrah. Even the main Hajj is done within a couple of days, in fact less than one week. One therefore gets irritated by the nonsensical defence of the Presidentʼs in ability to return to the country until early September 6 this year by the Minister of Information, John Odey. The Presidentʼs health situation is no longer secret to Nigerians. He has since his days as Katsina Governor known to be a chronic patient of dialysis otherwise called kidney malfunctioning. It is time Yarʼadua owns up to his condition and accept the fact that he is not ʽhale and heartyʼ as claimed by political jobbers like PDP National Chairman Vincent Ogbulafor among several others. But for how long will this hide and seek game continue without him telling Nigerians in black and white that he is sick? Will it continue till his term expires in 2011? Is it not humane to be sick? Is it a crime to be sick? If not then why the cover up? The cost of Yaraʼduaʼs ill health to the country is much. His condition, especially in recent times has tensed up the polity. The whole nation was virtually at a stand still since he took over power from the despotic civilian ruler Olusegun Obasanjo on May 29, 2007. We were severally told unofficially that he works for less than five hours a day. How can a President of the leading country of the blacks in the world that has a population of more than 200 million people deliver the dividends of democracy under this condition. Even a chief Executive of a parastatal at state or federal level cannot succeed in such a manner. He should surrender his life to the full hands of Almighty Allah and accept the fact that his ailment is a terminal one that requires full prayers. After all, as a Muslim he should have faith in Allah that he can still cure him from the ailment. The World health Organisation, WHO defined health as a complete state of physical, social and economic well-being of people. Yarʼadua cannot therefore be said to be healthy. From all indications, Yarʼadua is running away from being trapped by the provisions of section 144 and 145 of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution as regards the implications of ʽincapacitation of the President due to ill healthʼ. This section provides that once the President can no longer discharge his responsibilities as at when due, then the provisions of this section must be enforced. An Abuja based lawyer and chieftain of the Action Congress, Max Ogar had also said that Yarʼadua should step down on health grounds. His failing health must be a source of concern to all Nigerians. The onus therefore lies on the Senate to take a decisive action to save this countryʼs nascent democracy from collapse. For the avoidance of doubt, section 144 states that the President of the Senate has the power to put together a 5-man medical team, one of whom must be the personal physician of the President to consider the Presidentʼs incapacitation or otherwise. Once this is done and the team confirms that the President is unfit to carry on the functions of his office, a resolution is further passed by both houses of the national assembly and signed by the President of the Senate and Speaker of the house of representatives and consequently from the day such resolution is gazzetted the president ceases to be the President of the country. It is therefore the highest stage of dishonesty and hypocrisy for people like Tony Anenih to say that the matter of Yarʼaduaʼs health should be handled with caution. Incase you have forgotten, Anenih was the coordinator of the succession meetings aimed at shopping for Yarʼaduaʼs successor in case he dies of his ailment. The several meetings held in that direction was the basis of Baba Gana Kingibe, Secretary to the Government of the Federationʼs sack from office recently. It will be recalled that only recently, Anenih in a full page advertorial described those attempting to remove Yarʼadua as rascals. Anenihʼs swift reaction was to deny his involvement in the meetings sourcing for a successor to Yarʼadua. As a renown political schemer, Anenih had last Wednesday dominated the Nigerian Newspapers with an opinion that looked like an advertorial titled ʽYarʼaduaʼs health: a call for cautionʼ, tried to justify Yarʼaduaʼs ruler ship of the country in spite of his health status by bringing to the fore certain global examples of unhealthy President serving their countries. All these are with a view to gaining acceptance in the Yarʼadua camp. Anenihʼs reference of notable Presidents of the USA like Woodrow Wilson, Dwright Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan who all suffered ailments including cerebral strokes, leukaemia, Alzheimer, cancer of the colon and senile dementia among others were out of place, irrelevant, unfit and unrelated to the Nigerian situation. Ordinarily, what Anenih wrote should have come from the office of the Minister of Information as part of its propaganda work. But ironically, it was coming from a ʽdissidentʼ and one of those who worked against Yarʼaduaʼs nomination as a Presidential candidate of the party in 2006, just to gain the favours of the President. One wonders what the Presidency and the Minister of Information were doing when all kinds of things were being said about the Presidentʼs health. One is however happy that Anenih has himself admitted that ʽthe fate of our President is tied to the fate of the country; national security, economy and other critical aspects of our national life depend on the well-being of the President and others in leadership positionʼ. That is the bitter truth. My view is that Anenih was merely being sycophantic. No matter what, people like Anenih say about the Presidentʼs health status, it is better for Yarʼadua and the nation to give him the chance to take leave off his governance of the country in view of his non performance due to ill health after almost 2 years in office. This is enough a reason for Yarʼadua to hands-off the running of the affairs of the country. This is the only honourable way to show Nigerians that Yaraʼdua is the courageous, focused and good leader that Anenih has said he is. There is no two way about it. Yaraʼdua must resign now if at all he has the interest of Nigeria and Nigerians at heart.
Barrister Rafindadi Mohammed (rafindadimohd@yahoo.com) 20 Daura Street Katsina
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