President Muhammadu Buhari is set to embark on another foreign trip to London, on Tuesday for an undisclosed medical treatment.
This adds to the number of foreign medical trips President Buhari has embarked upon since he assumed office on May 29, 2015.
The latest trip makes it his sixth in all, covering a period of no fewer than 170 days, from his last five trips.
The series of trips in the early years of President Muhammadu Buhari had raised concerns over his health condition and his ability to rule the country.
The following is a timeline of the President’s trips for medical attention:
From February 5-10, 2016: Buhari took a six-day vacation in the United Kingdom, saying that his doctors lived in England.
June 6-19, 2016: Buhari went on a 10-day medical trip to England for an ear infection surgery.
He extended his trip by three days to rest.
January 19, 2017: Buhari went to London again on a medical vacation.
On February 5, 2017: Buhari wrote the National Assembly, seeking extension of his London medical leave.
March 10, 2017: Buhari returned to Nigeria, but didn’t resume work immediately at Aso Villa. The Presidency said “he’s working from home.”
On May 7, 2017: Buhari embarked on trip to London for another medical vacation. He returned after 104 days.
August 19, 2017: Buhari returned to Nigeria and it took him a while to resume work because rats had reportedly damaged furniture in his office. The presidency later announced that he’ll be working from home.
On May 8, 2018: Buhari went to London for a four-day “medical review.”
The latest is the one to be embarked upon on March 30th to London.
Meanwhile, a strong warning was issued by the Senate in November 2020, to State House officials for President Muhammadu Buhari to stop embarking on foreign trips for medical attention after sitting on the proposed N1.3bn for the State House Clinic from the N19.7bn budget for 2021.
Senator Danjuma La’ah (PDP Kaduna South), Committee on Federal Character and Intergovernmental Affairs, who gave the warning, when the State House Permanent Secretary, Tijani Umar, appeared before the panel to defend his 2021 budget estimates, said the Federal Government and State House officials should, this year, put the State House Clinic in order for such purposes, rather than allow Buhari to jet out on medical tourism frequently.
