Sen. Ahmed Makarfi, former Kaduna governor and PDP’s national caretaker committee chairman, has urged Nigerians to continue to pray for the full recovery of President Muhammadu Buhari.
“We are happy to welcome the president from his medical vacation in London. We welcome him home; but we will continue to pry his full recovery,” Makarfi told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in a telephone interview on Friday in Jos.
Buhari, who traveled to London on a medical vacation on Jan. 19, returned to the country on Friday, March 10. “The PDP will continue to pray for the president; all Nigerians should do same.
“Presiding over Nigeria is a huge task, so we must pray for sound and steady health so that Buhari can effectively handle that tough job,” Makarfi said, in his reaction to the news.
Meanwhile, Nigerians across religious and political faiths have taken to the streets in Masaka, Mararaba and Keffi in Nasarawa State, to celebrate the safe return of the president from London.
Newsmen report that the jubilant crowds took over the busy Abuja-Keffi highway, causing a heavy traffic snarl.
Some of the residents, who spoke with journalists in Karu, said that they were happy over his safe return, and prayed for God’s guidance and protection to enable him perform his constitutional responsibilities to Nigerians.
Our correspondents, who monitored the jubilation, observed that the residents held placards appreciating God for the safe return of Buhari.
Some of the placards read: “Baba, Welcome to Nigeria, We thank God for your safe return”; “Nigerians have been waiting for you”; “we stand with you and trust you for good governance in Nigeria”, while another screamed: “Oyoyo Baba Buhari”.
News also reports that many motorists were forced to park their vehicles by the road sides, while others were seeing pleading with the crowd to make way for traffic.
A resident of Karu, Halilu Abu, told journalists that they were celebrating God’s kindness to the president. “We prayed to God for his return. Now that he is here, we are celebrating,” he said.
He urged the president to redouble his efforts towards a better Nigeria, and called for full support to government policies. Another resident of Karu, Mrs. Sarah Oboha, a trader, said that she was very happy over the return of President President Muhammadu Buhari.
“The stories about him and his fate out there were many. Now that he is here, all those stories have gone and we are happy,” she said. But in Lokoja, Kogi State, the residents have expressed mixed feelings over the return of President Buhari back to the country.
In separate interviews with newsmen, some of them expressed joy over his return, while others opined that the President should have enjoyed a much longer rest. A legal practitioner, Mr Peter Bolaji, saidthat his return was good news and thanked God for restoring his health and bringing him back safely.
“We urge him to immediately continue his good works; he should continue his commitment and determination to eliminate corruption, end insurgencies and bring the country out of recession as soon as possible,” Bolaji said.
A former Deputy Director in the ministry of information in Kogi, Mr Yomi Adewumi, however told NAN that the president’s return could only make sense if it was accompanied by a clean bill of health. “What is the point, if he came home today, only to be ferried back to London a week or two later?
“Now that he is back, we should not be told, soon afterwards, that he has returned to the UK for further medical treatment,” Adewumi said.
A civil servant, Mrs. Aisha Usman, expressed gratitude to God for the return of the president. “Now that he is back every, the rumour about his death has been finally laid to rest; we are sure now that our President is not dead.
“We are glad that he is back home and pray God to perfect his health to enable him work toward pulling Nigeria out of recession because Nigerians are suffering,” she said. Mr Mike Abu, former Chief Press Secretary to former Kogi Deputy Governor, told newsmen that Buhari’s return was a good development because Nigerians had always prayed for him.
“We expect him to get back to action at once; we also expect him to try to rest in between, because we understand that he still needs some rest.
“The challenges of our country are so enormous and should not be allowed to affect his health. “We believe some practical positive steps have been taken by the Acting President, Prof Yemi Osibajo, while the President was away and we want him to leverage on them.
“Osibanjo has made meaningful gains in the efforts to restore peace the in Niger Delta. He has also improved the fortunes of the exchange rate and curbed the activities of herdsmen; we want Buhari to build on that,” he said.
