December 30, 2008
Authoritative sources at the presidency in Abuja have told SaharaReporters that Umaru Yar'adua's threat of legal action against Abuja –based Leadership newspaper over its Saturday edition was done to keep local newspapers from a new round of speculations over his health until it is expedient for him to travel abroad for treatment.
Leadership alleged in a front page story that the troubled leader had “fallen critically ill,” and that “a team of medical personnel had been flown into the country from Saudi Arabia to attend to Yar'Adua, whose condition had been 'unstable' since late Thursday."
The newspaper noted that it was the second time in as many months that Yar’Adua was requiring “serious medical attention,” a situation that had resulted in his avoiding public functions.
A reliable source told SaharaReporters that Yar'adua's health was so bad in the previous week that he had planned on traveling to Saudi Arabia en-route to Germany but had to cancel at the last minute because of the tone of the Supreme Court hearing of his election case. His advisers were quoted as telling him not to venture out of Nigeria as they feared that the Supreme Court might be swayed by those making the argument that he is physically unfit to rule.
Yar'adua has therefore resorted to managing his sagging health in Nigeria until the Supreme Court delivers its ruling.
According to sources close to the apex court, that is expected to be sometime in December. Since returning from a medical trip in Saudi Arabia two months ago that had originally been disguised as a religious one, Yar'adua has not engaged in any serious work. One of his political associates told SaharaReporters that Mr. Yar'adua could not even deliver on the small promises he made to his inner circle after returning to Nigeria. "He could not reconstitute his cabinet or reconstitute Federal parastatals boards that were dissolved over a year ago," says the associate.
It would be recalled that Mr. Yar’Adua was only able to dissolve his cabinet two weeks ago. The decision to sue Leadership newspaper for libel was announced by Yar'Adua special adviser, Segun Adeniyi as he lampooned the newspaper for peddling “falsehood” about the state of health of Yar'adua.
The statement, which was written as a news item and distributed to newspaper houses all over Nigeria did not mention Yar’Adua’s credibility problem, including why the often-sick leader lied about his last trip Saudi Arabia or failed to welcome the German president at the airport last week as is the protocol. For the airport ceremony, Yar’Adua sent his Minister of Justice and Attorney-General, Michael Aondoakaa. He met the visiting leader at the Sheraton Hotel for a brief period after his doctors pumped him up with steroids.
Saharareporters learnt that despite Yar'adua's pretensions about observing the "rule of law" by suing Leadership newspaper, security agencies had shaken down the publisher and extracted an apology from him for Yar'adua. The publisher of the Leadership titles, Sam Nda Isiah, could not be reached to comment on what transpired between him and the attorney General of the federation and the director of the SSS, but Saharareporters confirmed that three editors of Leadership newspaper were briefly arrested by the police and taken to the IG's office at Lousi Edet House in Abuja. They were let go after the policemen, working on the orders of the Inspector General, Mike Okiro and AGF, Aondoakaa, extracted an apology and "confessional statements" from them.
We have also learnt that the arrest of the editors was made with the intention of charging them for "sedition." However, the meeting of the 44th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human Rights in the federal capital compelled Yar'adua to jettison the idea of holding the editors and arraigning them for sedition tomorrow morning. The federal government, which is hosting the meeting, has so far spent N200 million from a fund that is being administered by AGF Aondoakaa.
Sources close to Yar'Adua told Saharareporters that he is unlikely to follow through with his threat to sue Leadership newspapers because of the concern that he may be forced to declare his health status before a law court. His prognosis remains bad and all the harassment of newspapers and internet bloggers is aimed at scaring anyone away from reporting on Yar'adua's health before the Supreme Court is able to grant him a favorable ruling, which Yar'adua is believed to have paid for.
Yar'adua, according to sources at the presidency, plans a prolonged medical trip abroad as soon as he obtains his desired ruling form the top court. He medical treatments have so far cost Nigeria $12 million according to sources familiar with payments to foreign doctors and medical supplier at the presidency.
Leadership alleged in a front page story that the troubled leader had “fallen critically ill,” and that “a team of medical personnel had been flown into the country from Saudi Arabia to attend to Yar'Adua, whose condition had been 'unstable' since late Thursday."
The newspaper noted that it was the second time in as many months that Yar’Adua was requiring “serious medical attention,” a situation that had resulted in his avoiding public functions.
A reliable source told SaharaReporters that Yar'adua's health was so bad in the previous week that he had planned on traveling to Saudi Arabia en-route to Germany but had to cancel at the last minute because of the tone of the Supreme Court hearing of his election case. His advisers were quoted as telling him not to venture out of Nigeria as they feared that the Supreme Court might be swayed by those making the argument that he is physically unfit to rule.
Yar'adua has therefore resorted to managing his sagging health in Nigeria until the Supreme Court delivers its ruling.
According to sources close to the apex court, that is expected to be sometime in December. Since returning from a medical trip in Saudi Arabia two months ago that had originally been disguised as a religious one, Yar'adua has not engaged in any serious work. One of his political associates told SaharaReporters that Mr. Yar'adua could not even deliver on the small promises he made to his inner circle after returning to Nigeria. "He could not reconstitute his cabinet or reconstitute Federal parastatals boards that were dissolved over a year ago," says the associate.
It would be recalled that Mr. Yar’Adua was only able to dissolve his cabinet two weeks ago. The decision to sue Leadership newspaper for libel was announced by Yar'Adua special adviser, Segun Adeniyi as he lampooned the newspaper for peddling “falsehood” about the state of health of Yar'adua.
The statement, which was written as a news item and distributed to newspaper houses all over Nigeria did not mention Yar’Adua’s credibility problem, including why the often-sick leader lied about his last trip Saudi Arabia or failed to welcome the German president at the airport last week as is the protocol. For the airport ceremony, Yar’Adua sent his Minister of Justice and Attorney-General, Michael Aondoakaa. He met the visiting leader at the Sheraton Hotel for a brief period after his doctors pumped him up with steroids.
Saharareporters learnt that despite Yar'adua's pretensions about observing the "rule of law" by suing Leadership newspaper, security agencies had shaken down the publisher and extracted an apology from him for Yar'adua. The publisher of the Leadership titles, Sam Nda Isiah, could not be reached to comment on what transpired between him and the attorney General of the federation and the director of the SSS, but Saharareporters confirmed that three editors of Leadership newspaper were briefly arrested by the police and taken to the IG's office at Lousi Edet House in Abuja. They were let go after the policemen, working on the orders of the Inspector General, Mike Okiro and AGF, Aondoakaa, extracted an apology and "confessional statements" from them.
We have also learnt that the arrest of the editors was made with the intention of charging them for "sedition." However, the meeting of the 44th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human Rights in the federal capital compelled Yar'adua to jettison the idea of holding the editors and arraigning them for sedition tomorrow morning. The federal government, which is hosting the meeting, has so far spent N200 million from a fund that is being administered by AGF Aondoakaa.
Sources close to Yar'Adua told Saharareporters that he is unlikely to follow through with his threat to sue Leadership newspapers because of the concern that he may be forced to declare his health status before a law court. His prognosis remains bad and all the harassment of newspapers and internet bloggers is aimed at scaring anyone away from reporting on Yar'adua's health before the Supreme Court is able to grant him a favorable ruling, which Yar'adua is believed to have paid for.
Yar'adua, according to sources at the presidency, plans a prolonged medical trip abroad as soon as he obtains his desired ruling form the top court. He medical treatments have so far cost Nigeria $12 million according to sources familiar with payments to foreign doctors and medical supplier at the presidency.
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