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| President Buhari |
Recall that few minutes ago, Tellforceblog reported that President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday, April 26, was absent from the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. This left the Vice-President, Yemi Osinbajo to preside over the meeting.
It also reported that more than 20 out of 36 Ministers were absent at the meeting.
Last week, the meeting did not hold, the officials later used the Easter holiday as an excuse.
Meanwhile, it was reported that the cabinet waited the arrival of the president until around 11.00am, when the Presidential Villa’s chief of protocols suddenly appeared and whispered to Osinbajo.
A security agent had also anxiously stood behind the president’s official seat in expectation of the his attendance.
The Vice-President apparently started the meeting some minutes after 11am with a call for the national anthem recitation, followed by prayers by the Ministers of Education, Adamu Adamu and that of Health, Isaac Adewole.
As soon as the meeting started, some ministers appears to be surprised by the absence of President Buhari and were seen curiously whispering to know the problem.
The pressmen were later excused from the FEC meeting which got underway.
After the meeting which lasted for 2hours, while briefing the State House correspondents Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who is the Minister of Information and Culture, claimed that President Buhari couldn’t make it to the meeting because he needed some rest at home.
Mohammed further stated that the President has ordered that all the files on his table be brought to him for treatment, says he would be working from home.
Lai Mohammed said: “We just concluded the Federal Executive Council meeting, I’m sure you noticed that the President was not there. He was not there because he asked that he be allowed to rest and asked the VP to preside.
“And he will be working from home. He has asked all his files to be taken to him in the house. He will be working from home today.”
The Minister also repeated the same to Vanguard which sought more clarification in an exclusive interview.
“He was not in that meeting because the President sent word that he wanted to rest and he wanted the VP to preside over and he asked for all his files to be brought back to him that he will be working from the house.”
When told that virtually everybody in the meeting was surprised at the president’s absence when the Vice President Osinbajo called for the recitation of the national anthem, the Minister responded by saying: “that’s your own opinion.”
When asked if the government would officially apologize to he Punch Newspaper for sacking its State House correspondent, Mr. Olalekan Adetayo, from the Presidential Villa as demanded by the company.
He said: “I think we should blow a matter out of proportion. The special adviser to the president on Media, Mr. Adesina immediately took a step that reversed that. I think that is proof enough that this government is not about stifling the press.
“You forget it is the same administration that restored the pass of Dutchewalle Reporter. I am happy with what the media aides have done. I think that settles it.”
