Guardian News – Houston, TX – With less than six weeks to the general
elections, campaign activities of All Progressives Congress (APC) have
suffered another setback over a tenaciously weakening health of its flag
bearer, Muhammadu Buhari. The ex-general was secretly rushed to the United
Kingdom for treatment, aboard a British Airways, according to authentic
party sources.
Buhari’s travel arrangement was made by a few close confidants under an
emergency circumstance, and shielded from the key members of the campaign.
The information it was gathered made it to the media quicker than
expected, throwing the entire campaign into confusion. As of press time,
the campaign is grounded in confusion, leaving inadvertent activities to
small party groups and social media cliques with little or no knowledge of
precise materials that represent the party objectives.
A regional campaign leader who came to Abuja for a meeting, told
International Guardian under strict anonymity, that his meeting was
cancelled without any specific reasons. “That is unusual to me, because
this is a very crucial moment in this campaign and not a period to be
travelling up and down,” he said. Other campaign leaders have voiced out
condemnation of a lack of transparency about campaign activities. For
instance, a campaign consultant attached to the social media told our
reporter expressed similar concerns, saying “We really need to get
everybody on the same page. We are all not just focusing in the right
direction. How can I defend the fact that my presidential candidate left
abroad just like that to meet who? Why the rush and why the secrecy?”
To unstiffen the blows created by the embarrassment, the Director, Media
and Publicity Directorate of campaign, Mallam Garba Shehu claimed the
general had travelled to the UK for official reasons. According to his
statement, “Buhari would hold meetings with key members of the British
political establishment and interact with some global institutions with
stakeholder interest in the affairs of Nigeria.” The statement further
claimed that “General Buhari will hopefully give a talk at the prestigious
foreign policy hub, the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham
House in London.”
Excuses from the Buhari’s camp, it was gathered, angered some campaign
members close to Buhari’s running mate, Dr. Yemi Osinbajo who were
outraged that even the aspiring vice president was always left out of
major party activities and decisions. “You can imagine the insult – yes I
mean the insult that, in my position in this campaign, I have to read
everything about the campaign in the social media. If the man is sick – so
what? We should be working as a party not as individuals,” another
aggrieved APC senior campaign member told our field reporter in Abuja. He
continued, “How can a presidential candidate travel abroad for whatever
reason without telling his running mate? This is exactly what happened
during the Yar’Adua regime, and you can see the same thing repeating
itself.”
Buhari’s campaign activities have suffered a severe setback recently over
poor health. Last month, videos of his fragile comportment, lack of
memory, and speech inaudibility were circulated in the social media –
creating another major distraction among his campaign team. Last month,
International Guardian reported how speculations that Buhari’s may not
make it through a four-year term if he won because of a visibly
deteriorating health fuelled a suspicious relationship between General
Buhari’s camp and Dr. Osibanjo. Buhari had allegedly accused the
Tinubi/Osibanjo camp of praying for his death – a situation similar to the
late President Shehu Musa Yar’Adua when critics accused former President
Olusegun Obasanjo of nominating a sick candidate to jeopardize chances
allotted to the Northern zone in the party.
Another distractive bombshell of the Buhari campaign came up when a
revelation made by Buhari’s former running mate in the 2011 election, Dr.
Tunde Bakare to Kadaria Ahmed, the host of Straight talk with Kadaria
confirm a reported scam proposed to him under a merger of the Congress for
the Progressive Change (CPC) and Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in
the 2011 presidential race. Prophetic-Apostolic pastor revealed how he
was actually persuaded to sign a resignation letter as the vice president
ahead of a possible election victory, but he rejected the offer as
“illegal” and “perjury.” The video clip resurfaced in the social media
creating another round of discord within the Buhari’s campaign, and
fuelling rumors that Dr. Osinbajo may have accepted a similar deal prior
to his nomination – a claim Osinbajo’s camp categorically denied.
Courtesy: The Guardian News