Shocker!!! London Becomes The New ‘Holy Land’ For APC Chieftains

Jerusalem, Rome, and Mecca, have been traditional holy lands for thousands of years, but Nigerian All Progressives Congress, APC, politicians seem to have added a new location to the exclusive list – London.

Before now, London, the capital city of England, United Kingdom, UK, to Nigerians, was only one of the world’s major economic centres. However, when it was chosen by President Muhammadu Buhari, as the ideal place for his vacation and medical tourism, the city adopted a new role for Nigerian politicians, particularly for members of the ruling APC.

Buhari had a month ago, written to the Senate that he would proceed on a medical vacation for 10 days, and that Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, would act on his behalf as President for the period. In the letter addressed to Senate President, Bukola Saraki, Buhari said he would be away from Monday, January 23, to Monday, February 6, 2017.

Since that time, speculations have run rife on all sorts of theories about the urgency required for the trip and his health status. Also, because there was no official disclosure of the President’s state of health, the speculations simply festered and blew up to rumours of his death and an alleged cover-up in the Presidency, in order to manage the information for selfish reasons.

This led to several calls by Nigerians, including the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, on the President, to address the Nigerian citizens from the UK, to assure them that he was alive and well, but the calls were ignored by the Presidency, which insisted that Buhari could not be compelled to speak or disclose his health status to anyone.

Then, a picture of a frail looking Buhari with Governor Ibikunle Amosun, of Ogun State, who was in company with a former Senator, Daisy Danjuma, and another individual, surfaced online. However, rather than douse the speculations, it only helped to the crowning of London as a new ‘Holy Land’ for APC politicians.

There was controversy over the picture of the President with Amosun and others, with allegations trending online that it was photoshopped, or an old picture that was edited to make it appear fresh.

However, Amosun had later at an event at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, Abeokuta, insisted that he had indeed visited Buhari, in London, but that he would not delve into the President’s health status.

“Yes, it is true I visited our President in London, and he is doing fine,” he had said

Some Experts have however, likened Amosun’s recount to the accounts of pilgrims after visits to holy lands.

Interestingly, it is what London seems to have become to APC politicians, because soon after the Governor’s return, more pictures of the President on vacation surfaced online; this time, they were pictures of President Buhari with a National Leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and its former National Chairman, Chief Bisi Akande.

According to a message on the official Twitter account of the Presidency, explaining the pictures, Tinubu and Akande were with Buhari, at the Abuja House, in London.

One of the critical Experts, a Lawyer, Mr. Tunde Esan, blamed the situation on a lack of a proper democratic structure, which puts so much power in individuals, rather than institutions.

“What drama is going on really? The President has said, ‘I am not well, I need time to attend to my health, so my Vice President is the acting President. So what is this pilgrimage about? What is this waste of resources about? They are going to see a man who has said he needs to take care of his health,” Esan said.

“We have the Executive, the Legislature, and the Judiciary, but the truth is that all of the power is contained in one man who is the President, so every sycophant and bootlicker will let the man know that they are still loyal to him.”

Much like Amosun, Tinubu also gave an account of what he saw on his visit to the new ‘Holy Land’, though, it was while dismissing an online report in which he had allegedly disclaimed his visit to President Buhari.

However, the pilgrimage did not stop there, as it was the turn of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki; Speaker House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara; and Senate Leader, Ahmed Lawan; to observe their own ‘pilgrimage’ and they did not disappoint, as their pictures were soon online like proper ‘tourists’.

Confirming the Wednesday, February 15 visit to London, Saraki in a statement via his official Facebook page, said he was delighted to see that Buhari was fine.

Reacting, a Social Commentator and Legal Practitioner, Liborous Oshoma, described the trend as a clear indication that politicians would never let an opportunity to spend taxpayers’ money pass them by.

According to him, it will not be surprising to see other Governors travel to London to also see the President.

He said: “And you know our politicians, every opportunity to spend taxpayers’ money is a welcome development. Don’t be surprised that the trip made by the Federal Lawmakers, was taken care of by taxpayers’ money. For me, such trips are private and not official.