Not a few tongues had wagged over the fact that President
Muhammadu Buhari was outside the country on medical vacation for
weeks on end, and no member of his media team was with him. Many
times, we had been confronted by journalists on why we were sitting
pretty in Nigeria, while our principal was confronted by severe
health challenges in London.
How did I feel about the situation? I had always told the media,
and others who cared to listen, that whoever is on a presidential
entourage at any time is the prerogative of the President. In the
first 20 months of this administration, the President had made
scores of trips, both locally and internationally. There was none,
and I repeat, none, in which the media team was excluded. We were
always there to keep the world abreast with what the President was
doing.
When President Buhari first needed to travel for holiday and
medical attention in January this year, it was deemed a private
trip, in which the media was not needed. On such journey, you
naturally would need security details, your personal physician,
protocol and domestic aides, and those were the ones that went.
Media? It depended on the principal. What was essential was that
the channels of communication be kept open.
When the fuss came that the media handlers of the President were
transmitting at best, third hand information to the public, it did
not bother me as much as it did some people, particularly,
journalists. The discretion to have anyone with him at a given time
was that of the President, and there was nothing anybody could do
about it. I was in direct contact with those who were around him,
and that was the best in the circumstances.
When the rumour mill went into overdrive sometime in January
that the President had passed on, the first person I called was his
personal physician. He laughed, saying nothing of such happened. I
was thus confident enough to debunk the malicious information.
Before he returned on March 10, in what turned out to be the
first leg of his medical treatment, President Buhari had spoken
with me personally on phone, the details of which I made available
to the public. It was sufficient for me.
The President left again on May 7. I was with him at home till
he left for the airport. Information dissemination followed the
same pattern as on the first trip. The aides on hand told me
whatever was necessary, and I communicated same, never for once
making it appear that the information was firsthand. It was the
best and the honest thing to do. You work for a straightforward
man, it would be a disservice to him for you to begin to spin and
bend information. Never!
Not once did I agitate to visit London to see the President. I
trusted enough to receive whatever information was passed to me,
knowing the kind of man we serve. Blessed are those who have not
seen, and yet believe.
A lot of people were using paracetamol for what they considered
my headache. They continued to fret that I was not in London, but
it didn’t bother me a bit. Ask my wife and children, they would
tell you that I am never in unnecessary hurry. I don’t push things,
but the lines always fall for me in pleasant places. I have learnt
to take all things in my strides, and let the divine powers work
out the rest. Some people will erroneously call it a laid back
approach, but those who are discerning would see that I had always
excelled in whatever I did, physical, professional, spiritual,
domestic etc. No need to sing my own praises. Not unto us, but unto
Him, be all the glory and praises.
And then, on Wednesday last week, ‘come came to become’
(apologies K.O Mbadiwe). I received a communication to proceed to
London to see the President, along with other members of the
presidential media team. To lead the delegation was Alhaji Lai
Mohammed, Minister of Information and Culture, while others
included myself, Mallam Garba Shehu, Lauretta Onochie, Bayo
Omoboriowo, and the Nigerian Television Authority team of Adamu
Sambo and Emmanuel Arinhi. Senior Special Assistant on
International and Diaspora Matters, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, who was in
London on another official matter, eventually joined us to see the
President on Saturday.
Leaving the country through the Nnamdi Azikiwe International
Airport on Friday morning, one was as conspicuous as a tiger in a
teashop. All that knew me, and saw that I was headed for London,
naturally said: “Please give our greetings to Baba o.” They just
took it for granted that I was going to London to see the King, and
not the Queen this time, as made popular by the pussycat in the
nursery rhyme.
The trip aboard the British Airways Boeing 777-200/300 was
pleasant and pleasurable. It was like a whole city in the sky. The
Nigerians who saw me and my colleague, Mallam Garba Shehu, onboard,
also jumped to the same right conclusion as those at the airport:
“Please greet Baba for us o.”
On Saturday afternoon, we were ferried from our hotels at the
appointed time. At Zero Hour, we were at the Abuja House, Nigerian
High Commission, London.
As we strode into the living room, I saw with infinite pleasure,
the great object of my mission. Standing tall and ramrod straight
was President Muhammadu Buhari, with that ubiquitous smile in
place. He was looking a lot better than he had ever looked in the
past eight months. My heart leapt for joy, and sang praises to God.
Was this not the man they said was on life support machine? Didn’t
they say he could neither walk nor talk? But he was welcoming
Alhaji Lai Muhammed, and calling him by name. I was next. I shook
the hands of the man I had admired since his days as a military
head of state, a man I am not ashamed to call my leader and
President today, and any day.
Seated, the President had words for each member of the team,
which showed that he had been following events back home very
keenly. He commended the Minister of Information and Culture,
saying, “Lai, you are all over the place. I see you virtually every
day. You have been working very hard.” Pointing to Abike
Dabiri-Erewa, he said, “She is here in her constituency. But me, I
am here reluctantly.” We all laughed, and Dabiri-Erewa jocularly
issued what you could call a quit notice, saying she didn’t want
the President in her constituency again.
How are you, Mr President?
“I am okay now. I feel I could go home, but doctors are in
charge here, and I’ve learnt to obey my doctors. I’ve learnt to
obey orders, rather than be the one giving the orders.”
If you have met the President personally, he is usually full of
wisecracks, and this day was not different. He told us he had
enough time to watch television, and commended the NTA
particularly, and Nigerian media generally, for bringing him up to
speed with what was happening back home.
He said he had been watching the protests by people who wanted
him to return home post-haste, or resign. He mentioned one of the
leaders of the protest by name, and laughed. I did not discern any
malice in the laughter.
President Buhari told us he seldom got sick, something he had
told Nigerians on March 10, at his first return. When we told him
millions of people were praying for him at home, in Africa, and
even beyond, I saw the glow in his eyes, and he said :”May God
reward them,” after noting that what Nigeria did in The Gambia in
January, which forced a sit-tight Yahya Jammeh to quit office,
“fetched us a lot of goodwill and latitude.”
We talked about many issues, some of which are not due for
public consumption yet. The President was obviously enjoying our
company. Then the State Chief of Protocol, Ambassador Lawal
Kazaure, popped up (as he always does) and indicated that the
allotted time was over.
“Oh dear,” the President exclaimed, reluctant to see us go.
It was time for photographs, and we walked into the garden. The
President was spry, as he joined us. Bayo Omoboriowo clicked away,
and those were the pictures you have seen. The President even
almost sprinted, while going back inside. Omoboriowo captured that
rare moment.
And to the dining room we proceeded. We sat at that famous
table, laden with different kinds of fruits; banana, apple, pear,
water melon, and many others. It was a setting which a man blinded
by bile, and suffused with hatred, had described as a previous fast
breaking session at Aso Villa during a Ramadan season. Father,
forgive him, for he knows not what he says.
We ate, heartily. Our appetites had been stimulated by the state
in which we met our principal. Wife of the President, Mrs Aisha
Buhari, was at hand to attend to us, urging us to eat as much as we
wanted. Halima, daughter of the President, as well as Yusuf, his
son, were also there.
It was a pleasure meeting all the presidential aides once again,
and we greeted one another warmly: Yau and Lawal (trusted security
details), Sunday (the personal cook of many decades), the
ADC, SCOP, CSO, CPSO, the personal physician, Tunde Sabiu,
Sarki Abbah, and many others. It was a grand re-union.
Lunch over, the President bade each person goodbye, with a
handshake. We said to him, “See you soon, sir.” But when
Dabiri-Erewa uttered the same, the President laughed, and declared:
“No, we will leave you here, as this is your constituency.”
The health status of our President, as earlier attested to by
Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, during his visit, was a
testimony to the healing powers of God. This was a man gravely ill,
but restored miraculously. It can only be God. In spite of what
haters, wailers, and filthy dreamers imagine, and which they spew
out, God remains merciful and immutable. He has the final say. If I
were a hater, I would repent now, in sackcloth and ashes.
Yes, I’ve been to London to see the King – The Lion King. But
unlike the pussycat in the nursery rhyme, I didn’t frighten any
mouse under the chair.
- Adesina is Special Adviser to President Muhammadu
Buhari on Media and Publicity
Not a few tongues had wagged over the fact that President
Muhammadu Buhari was outside the country on medical vacation for
weeks on end, and no member of his media team was with him. Many
times, we had been confronted by journalists on why we were sitting
pretty in Nigeria, while our principal was confronted by severe
health challenges in London.
How did I feel about the situation? I had always told the media,
and others who cared to listen, that whoever is on a presidential
entourage at any time is the prerogative of the President. In the
first 20 months of this administration, the President had made
scores of trips, both locally and internationally. There was none,
and I repeat, none, in which the media team was excluded. We were
always there to keep the world abreast with what the President was
doing.
When President Buhari first needed to travel for holiday and
medical attention in January this year, it was deemed a private
trip, in which the media was not needed. On such journey, you
naturally would need security details, your personal physician,
protocol and domestic aides, and those were the ones that went.
Media? It depended on the principal. What was essential was that
the channels of communication be kept open.
When the fuss came that the media handlers of the President were
transmitting at best, third hand information to the public, it did
not bother me as much as it did some people, particularly,
journalists. The discretion to have anyone with him at a given time
was that of the President, and there was nothing anybody could do
about it. I was in direct contact with those who were around him,
and that was the best in the circumstances.
When the rumour mill went into overdrive sometime in January
that the President had passed on, the first person I called was his
personal physician. He laughed, saying nothing of such happened. I
was thus confident enough to debunk the malicious information.
Before he returned on March 10, in what turned out to be the
first leg of his medical treatment, President Buhari had spoken
with me personally on phone, the details of which I made available
to the public. It was sufficient for me.
The President left again on May 7. I was with him at home till
he left for the airport. Information dissemination followed the
same pattern as on the first trip. The aides on hand told me
whatever was necessary, and I communicated same, never for once
making it appear that the information was firsthand. It was the
best and the honest thing to do. You work for a straightforward
man, it would be a disservice to him for you to begin to spin and
bend information. Never!
Not once did I agitate to visit London to see the President. I
trusted enough to receive whatever information was passed to me,
knowing the kind of man we serve. Blessed are those who have not
seen, and yet believe.
A lot of people were using paracetamol for what they considered
my headache. They continued to fret that I was not in London, but
it didn’t bother me a bit. Ask my wife and children, they would
tell you that I am never in unnecessary hurry. I don’t push things,
but the lines always fall for me in pleasant places. I have learnt
to take all things in my strides, and let the divine powers work
out the rest. Some people will erroneously call it a laid back
approach, but those who are discerning would see that I had always
excelled in whatever I did, physical, professional, spiritual,
domestic etc. No need to sing my own praises. Not unto us, but unto
Him, be all the glory and praises.
And then, on Wednesday last week, ‘come came to become’
(apologies K.O Mbadiwe). I received a communication to proceed to
London to see the President, along with other members of the
presidential media team. To lead the delegation was Alhaji Lai
Mohammed, Minister of Information and Culture, while others
included myself, Mallam Garba Shehu, Lauretta Onochie, Bayo
Omoboriowo, and the Nigerian Television Authority team of Adamu
Sambo and Emmanuel Arinhi. Senior Special Assistant on
International and Diaspora Matters, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, who was in
London on another official matter, eventually joined us to see the
President on Saturday.
Leaving the country through the Nnamdi Azikiwe International
Airport on Friday morning, one was as conspicuous as a tiger in a
teashop. All that knew me, and saw that I was headed for London,
naturally said: “Please give our greetings to Baba o.” They just
took it for granted that I was going to London to see the King, and
not the Queen this time, as made popular by the pussycat in the
nursery rhyme.
The trip aboard the British Airways Boeing 777-200/300 was
pleasant and pleasurable. It was like a whole city in the sky. The
Nigerians who saw me and my colleague, Mallam Garba Shehu, onboard,
also jumped to the same right conclusion as those at the airport:
“Please greet Baba for us o.”
On Saturday afternoon, we were ferried from our hotels at the
appointed time. At Zero Hour, we were at the Abuja House, Nigerian
High Commission, London.
As we strode into the living room, I saw with infinite pleasure,
the great object of my mission. Standing tall and ramrod straight
was President Muhammadu Buhari, with that ubiquitous smile in
place. He was looking a lot better than he had ever looked in the
past eight months. My heart leapt for joy, and sang praises to God.
Was this not the man they said was on life support machine? Didn’t
they say he could neither walk nor talk? But he was welcoming
Alhaji Lai Muhammed, and calling him by name. I was next. I shook
the hands of the man I had admired since his days as a military
head of state, a man I am not ashamed to call my leader and
President today, and any day.
Seated, the President had words for each member of the team,
which showed that he had been following events back home very
keenly. He commended the Minister of Information and Culture,
saying, “Lai, you are all over the place. I see you virtually every
day. You have been working very hard.” Pointing to Abike
Dabiri-Erewa, he said, “She is here in her constituency. But me, I
am here reluctantly.” We all laughed, and Dabiri-Erewa jocularly
issued what you could call a quit notice, saying she didn’t want
the President in her constituency again.
How are you, Mr President?
“I am okay now. I feel I could go home, but doctors are in
charge here, and I’ve learnt to obey my doctors. I’ve learnt to
obey orders, rather than be the one giving the orders.”
If you have met the President personally, he is usually full of
wisecracks, and this day was not different. He told us he had
enough time to watch television, and commended the NTA
particularly, and Nigerian media generally, for bringing him up to
speed with what was happening back home.
He said he had been watching the protests by people who wanted
him to return home post-haste, or resign. He mentioned one of the
leaders of the protest by name, and laughed. I did not discern any
malice in the laughter.
President Buhari told us he seldom got sick, something he had
told Nigerians on March 10, at his first return. When we told him
millions of people were praying for him at home, in Africa, and
even beyond, I saw the glow in his eyes, and he said :”May God
reward them,” after noting that what Nigeria did in The Gambia in
January, which forced a sit-tight Yahya Jammeh to quit office,
“fetched us a lot of goodwill and latitude.”
We talked about many issues, some of which are not due for
public consumption yet. The President was obviously enjoying our
company. Then the State Chief of Protocol, Ambassador Lawal
Kazaure, popped up (as he always does) and indicated that the
allotted time was over.
“Oh dear,” the President exclaimed, reluctant to see us go.
It was time for photographs, and we walked into the garden. The
President was spry, as he joined us. Bayo Omoboriowo clicked away,
and those were the pictures you have seen. The President even
almost sprinted, while going back inside. Omoboriowo captured that
rare moment.
And to the dining room we proceeded. We sat at that famous
table, laden with different kinds of fruits; banana, apple, pear,
water melon, and many others. It was a setting which a man blinded
by bile, and suffused with hatred, had described as a previous fast
breaking session at Aso Villa during a Ramadan season. Father,
forgive him, for he knows not what he says.
We ate, heartily. Our appetites had been stimulated by the state
in which we met our principal. Wife of the President, Mrs Aisha
Buhari, was at hand to attend to us, urging us to eat as much as we
wanted. Halima, daughter of the President, as well as Yusuf, his
son, were also there.
It was a pleasure meeting all the presidential aides once again,
and we greeted one another warmly: Yau and Lawal (trusted security
details), Sunday (the personal cook of many decades), the
ADC, SCOP, CSO, CPSO, the personal physician, Tunde Sabiu,
Sarki Abbah, and many others. It was a grand re-union.
Lunch over, the President bade each person goodbye, with a
handshake. We said to him, “See you soon, sir.” But when
Dabiri-Erewa uttered the same, the President laughed, and declared:
“No, we will leave you here, as this is your constituency.”
The health status of our President, as earlier attested to by
Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, during his visit, was a
testimony to the healing powers of God. This was a man gravely ill,
but restored miraculously. It can only be God. In spite of what
haters, wailers, and filthy dreamers imagine, and which they spew
out, God remains merciful and immutable. He has the final say. If I
were a hater, I would repent now, in sackcloth and ashes.
Yes, I’ve been to London to see the King – The Lion King. But
unlike the pussycat in the nursery rhyme, I didn’t frighten any
mouse under the chair.
- Adesina is Special Adviser to President Muhammadu
Buhari on Media and Publicity
Read more https://www.nairalaw.com/ive-been-to-london-to-see-the-king/