Ignore the ‘utter fabrication’, Buhari never said he won’t seek treatment abroad- Adesina

Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, has dismissed as “fabrication” a quote attributed to President Buhari in which he appeared to promise he would not be seeking medical treatment abroad if elected.

The specific statement in question was attributed to Buhari while speaking as a presidential candidate at Chatham House, London.

Buhari was alleged to have asked, “What is the difference between me and those who elected us to represent them, absolutely nothing. Why should Nigerian president not fly with other Nigerian public? Why do I need to embark on a foreign trip as a president with a huge crowd with public funds? Why do I need to go for a medical trip abroad if we cannot make our hospital (sic) functional?”

But in a statement issued on Wednesday, Adesina said the comments were false and are “a new dimension in the plot to diminish the stature of President Muhammadu Buhari before millions of Nigerians who love and adore their president”.

“First, it was a pernicious twisting and misinterpretation of the words of the president by mischievous elements, perhaps they can earn him opprobrium and infamy. When they see that the gambit is not achieving the desired results, they have now gone into utter fabrication of apocryphal statements, which they purvey through the social media,” he said.

Read also: MACE THEFT: Conspiracy between senators, security personnel responsible- DPO

“Fortunately, the Chatham House lecture of 2015 is in the public domain. The concoction by haters and agents of disunity is not part of the text of the lecture at all.

“The morbid minds that created the falsehood simply want to de-market and demean the president, having seen that defeating him in a free and fair electoral contest is a tall order.

“Therefore, they desire to instigate the electorate against him by creating statements that never existed, and attributing such to him.”

The presidential spokesman, however, added that the “dubious” people will not succeed, as Buhari’s reputation “has been built over time, and sustained for decades.”

“That is why he is widely acclaimed for integrity, transparency, honour, and accountability, both home and abroad. Negative minds can never erode or corrode this,” he said

 

RipplesNigeria… without borders, without fears

Click here to join the Ripples Nigeria WhatsApp group for latest updates.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now