Politics

Outrage as Buhari’s Ear Infection gulps Nigeria’s £50 million


A top source at the Presidency, has claimed that President Muhammadu Buhari’s foreign medical trip to London has already gulped more than 20 million British pounds.
The total cost of the trip, which includes, aviation fuel, accommodation cost, allowances for aides and medical treatment, amounts to about 50 Million pounds, the source confirmed. ‎
In what many described as reckless expenditure, this is coming at a time when the presidency has earmarked billions of naira for the State House Clinic, in the 2016 budget.
Reacting, a political scientist criticised Buhari, for embarking on a medical trip to the United Kingdom, UK.
He said, that such money that was used for Buhari’s foreign medical trip, could have been used to developed the Nation’s health infrastructures.
Recall, that the trip came against current economic woes, and revenue short falls, which have made it difficult for many State Governors to pay salaries of civil servants.
The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, had earlier announced that Buhari would be travelling to the United Kingdom for vacation and medical treatment, due to an Ear Infection.

Adesina, said that the trip would take 10 days, and that the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, would be acting as President.
Speaking on the state of the nation, a political commentator from the University of Jos, Lukeman Saka, said, “this is the government that had been canvassing for the blockage of wastage in the act of governance, now using public funds to fund a foreign medical trip”.
He added, that such development has exposed the ineptitude of the Nation’s leadership towards the growth of health facilities in the country.
Saka added that,”if the Nation’s health facilities have been developed, I don’t think there would be need for President Buhari to abandon all health institutions in the country and therefore travel to the UK, to seek medical attention”.
Saka, further pointed out, “I want to say that, there are many federal medical centers here in Nigeria, and even the one built by the former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Godswill Akpabio. It is a specialist hospital, President Buhari should have used this local hospital, instead of travelling abroad for medical attention.”
“This shows that, our leaders are not ready to patronise our own hospitals. This is uncalled for, this is a serious problem, and this will not improve health care delivery in Nigeria.
“It is high time we learn to encourage ourselves to use our own health facilities, instead of travelling overseas, because the money that would be used for foreign medical trips, could have been used here to move our health institutions forward”.
Saka, therefore advised President Buhari to shun all acts capable of affecting the health development in the country, in the habit of seeking foreign medical trips, moreso, that Nigeria is blessed with well experienced medical personnel that could attend to his ear problem here.