Former education minister, Oby Ezekwesili says the president’s rights to privacy should give way to the public’s right to know and has therefore
Ezekwesili said this and many more in a tweet on Sunday night.
“I think that at this stage and depth of fragility of the Nigeria-State, Privacy has to yield ground to our Right-to-know as citizens, the state of health of @MBuhari. We really must assess the physical or mental capability of @NGRPresident to carry on the duties of office,” she tweeted.
“Citizens can collectively push for an Independent Panel to help us make the critical medical determination of the state of mind and body of our President, @MBuhari. The conditions of Nigeria have become too grave for us all to sit still and watch a train wreck in the making.
“As an extremely concerned citizen, I hereby demand for a #MedicalPanelOnBuhari since we obviously cannot trust the State House Physician to provide us accurate information. It is reasonable demand now for citizens to have full disclosure on the state of health of @MBuhari,” Mrs. Ezekwesili further stated.
Nigeria’s economy entered a second recession in five years under President Muhammadu Buhari earlier this week. Kidnappers, bandits and Boko Haram terrorists have also intensified their deadly and exploitative onslaught on citizens.
This weekend, jihadists struck in Borno, leaving at least 43 farmers killed near Zabarmari, about 20 kilometres from Maiduguri. The United Nations believe the death toll is 110.
Also on Sunday, at least seven people were killed and several children feared missing following an attack on a community in Southern Kaduna.
Buhari has defied calls to sack his service chiefs, who have continued to supervise endemic corruption and insecurity in the country. Rather than yield the public’s call, the president has instead been unilaterally postponing the retirement of the service chiefs, a stalemate that is causing disaffection amongst military officers whose career growths are being suppressed.
The president’s mental health has long been a matter of public concern. Since assuming office in 2015, he has travelled on several occasions to receive medical care abroad, sometimes spending as long as three months with his doctors.
Despite public outcry, the president and his handlers have continued to conceal the nature of his ailments, refusing to disclose any critical information even as the president was publicly showing signs of memory impairment and slurred speech.
