Buhari Good Enough to Continue From 2019 - Presidential SSA, Garba Shehu Talks on President's 2nd Term

Buhari and his media aides in London

While speaking in an interview on Arise News Network, in London Monday, the Presidential Senior Special Assistatnt on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, said that the president is “good enough to continue” if given the opportunity to contest the 2019 presidential election.

According to ThisDay, Shehu expressed ignorance over Buhari’s ailment, stating that the president would speak to Nigerians when he returns from his medical vacation.

When asked if Buhari would seek re-election in 2019, Shehu said the president “is good enough to continue in 2009”, but added that the president’s re-election was not the issue at the moment.

“The main issue is the president comes back home in full health and resumes office. It is left for Nigerians to decide. I know the decision is with the people. But President Muhammadu Buhari is good enough to continue,” he said.

The presidential spokesman said he could not speak specifically on the nature of Buhari’s ailment, assuring Nigerians that the president would talk to them about what he went through in the course of his treatment.

He said: “I cannot tell because I do not know the nature of his ailment. As he is, the president does not need prompting from anyone before he comes out and tells Nigerians what happened to him.

“When he came back last time, President Buhari told Nigerians what he went through in the United Kingdom. I think the president will choose the right moment to talk to Nigerians.”

Constitutionally, Shehu argued that nothing requires the president to disclose the nature of his illness. “In the constitution, there is nowhere the president is required to disclose his illness.”

“This is a country where past presidents never fell ill before. Even when they fell ill, nobody knew about it. This is a country where past presidents never handed over to their deputies. We had a president who was dying in office. Nobody was ready to talk,” he explained.

He also faulted those canvassing for Buhari’s resignation due to his illness and long absence, noting that their agitation was linked “to some elements in the opposition”.

He said; “In any case, we are in a democracy. We cannot stop people from protesting or demonstrating. In a country of 170 million people, we only have two dozen people protesting and all of them with links with the opposition. Every person is entitled to his or her own view.

“Nigeria has a huge population. But there are people praying in churches or mosques for the president’s recovery,”he said.

He maintained that it was not correct to say that Nigerians were aggrieved over Buhari’s absence. “Instead, Nigerians are missing their president. They want him to come back. The president himself listens to the mass media. He monitors what is going on at home. He was also critical of some elements.

“Nigerians have to understand the situation. We have a constitution. The problem with Nigeria in the past has been that our presidents rarely went on vacation. They never handed over to their deputies.

“In the case of Buhari, he handed over power. This is because he believes the right thing must be done. That is the law. That is the constitution. He followed it properly before he left the country. He handed over according to the law.

“All the ministers are doing their work. All the chief executives are doing their jobs. All the advisers are on their jobs. So there is no vacancy. There is no vacuum in the federal government,” he stressed.