Tobias Sylvester
The whereabouts and health condition of the president-elect, Bola Tinubu has stirred controversy on his 71st birthday.
KanyiDaily recalls that barely one month after he was declared winner of the 2023 presidential election, Tinubu secretly traveled to Europe for a medical emergency.
After the medical trip was exposed, Tinubu’s team claimed he was on a relaxation trip after a hectic campaign that preceded his declaration as Nigeria’s president-elect last month.
But sources within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) revealed that Tinubu’s trip outside the country at this time and tales of his failing health condition “are already getting many leaders of the party nervous,” LEADERSHIP reports.
The apprehension over Tinubu’s health was further heightened when his spokesperson, Tunde Rahman, announced on Monday, “that the president-elect had directed that prayers should be offered in celebration of his 71st birthday anniversary” instead of the annual colloquium.
Tinubu, who is celebrating his 71st birthday anniversary on Wednesday, March 29, usually celebrates the day with lecture series under the auspices of the Bola Tinubu Colloquium.
While no one has been able to put a definite location where Tinubu visited overseas, it becomes even more worrisome, that no photos of recreational activities have surfaced either online or through his media handlers since he left the country a week ago.
“Look at the way he left the country secretly. He was already out of the country before his spokesman released the press statement about the trip. No airport photos showing his departure and arrival at his destination. It’s strange for a President-elect of a country like Nigeria,” a source told LEADERSHIP.
In both the ruling party and the opposition parties, there were growing concerns among political leaders on the prospects of Tinubu being inaugurated as President on May 29 when the incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari is expected to handover to his successor.
Competent sources said that the development is beginning to allegedly brew a cold war between the incoming First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, and the incoming Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima.
Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari congratulated Bola Tinubu on his 71st birthday, saying that Nigeria would experience effective governance under his administration.
