Lai Mohammed: Buhari Sought Medical Treatment Overseas Because ‘He’s Our Father, Deserves The Best’
Lai Mohammed, Minister of Information and Culture, has explained why President Muhammed Buhari sought the United Kingdom ahead of Nigeria for medical treatment.
Mohammed, who served as a guest on ‘Morning Crossfire’, a radio programme by Nigeria Info Abuja 95.1FM, on Thursday, was responding to an angry caller who criticised the Buhari-led All Progressives Congress (APC) for reneging on their campaign promises.
Recall that the APC, during its 2015 presidential campaign, had vowed to stop public officials from travelling abroad for medical attention at the expense of taxpayers and peril of ordinary Nigerians.
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But Mohammed, while reacting to the caller’s criticism, said, “My answer is very simple. Mr President is our father, he is the leader of the nation and I think he deserves the best in terms of medical treatment.”
Another caller had also asked why the APC-led administration was fond of flouting court orders; the minister had this to say: “If it is a court order and the order is not appealed, then you have flouted the order.
“But if the order is appealed, then it is not a final order. Also, you have to balance national security with the rule of law. In the case of Ifeanyi Ubah, I think it is neither here nor there.”
Concerning the high cost of food prices, Alhaji Lai Mohammed said: “The truth of the matter is that in 2015, this government imported 580,000MT of rice. We cut it down to 58,000MT in 2016 and we have saved about $200m in the process.
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“Yes, we understand the cost of rice is still high and we are going to intervene through price fixing by subsidising the cost of transportation.”
THE WHISTLER recalls that Lai Mohammed, while recently highlighting the achievements of the current administration, claimed President Buhari would have performed better if not for the fall of crude oil prices.
