The current president, Muhammadu Buhari, has been off grid for more than two months since stealing away to London on May 7 to receive treatment for a mystery ailment.
He has not been seen publicly (and has been heard from only once) since then.
In his absence, Buhari’s deputy, Yemi Osinbajo, has taken over the running of the country. But on Tuesday, Osinbajo too departed Nigeria for London, where he met with Buhari for the first time since the latter’s departure in May.
Why did he decide to make the trip now?
Upon his return on Wednesday, Osinbajo said he had gone to London simply to “check up” on Buhari and to “brief him on developments” in the West African country, which is in an economic recession and dealing with several security threats, including Boko Haram militants in the northeast.
“We had a very good time.... He’s in very good spirits, he’s recuperating very quickly and he’s doing very well,” said Osinbajo during a press briefing.
When asked how long the president’s absence would continue, the vice president was vague. “Deadlines aren’t a very good thing, but he is, as I said, recuperating fast. We are expecting him very shortly.”
Ever since he departed for the U.K. in January for his first medical trip of 2017, Buhari’s health has been a matter of national speculation in Nigeria. Observers have compared his case to that of Umaru Yar’Adua, Nigeria’s president from 2007 to 2010.
Yar’Adua disappeared to Saudi Arabia in 2009 for medical treatment, failing to return for three months and leaving political chaos in Nigeria. He died within three months of returning to the country.
The Nigerian government has kept silent on the specifics of Buhari’s ailment; the president himself, when he returned from his first trip in March, indicated he had received a blood transfusion, but little else is known of his condition.
This has fueled rumors among political opponents, who have suggested that Buhari may be critically ill or even dead. An opposition governor in southern Nigeria, Ayodele Fayose, has led calls for Buhari to resign, saying he is incapacitated and unable to govern.
Buhari after sick leaveView photos
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari addresses members of his cabinet upon his return from medical leave at the presidency in Abuja, Nigeria, on March 10. Buhari left Nigeria again on May 7 and hasn't appeared publicly since. SUNDAY AGHAEZE/AFP/Getty
Osinbajo’s visit may have been timed to counter such rumors, says Cheta Nwanze, head of Nigerian consultancy SBM Intelligence.
But Nwanze says that if the president is not back soon, Nigerians’ patience may run out. “If Buhari isn’t back by the end of the month, we will go right back to the speculation,” he says.
The vice president’s performance in Buhari’s absence has impressed many in Nigeria. The hands-on approach adopted by Osinbajo—who has visited conflict zones in both the oil-rich Niger Delta and the Boko Haram-hit northeast—contrasts with that of Buhari, who has gained the nickname “Baba Go Slow” due to his ponderous style.
Nigeria is a country with stark ethnic and religious divisions. It is split almost equally between a mostly Muslim north and a largely Christian south. More than 200 ethnic groups live in Nigeria: Buhari belongs to the Hausa-Fulani, the dominant ethnicity in the north, while Osinbajo is a Yoruba, the major group in the southwest.
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