President Muhammadu Buhari has cancelled another scheduled trip to Senegal.
While his advance teams had been in the West African country since Wednesday, President Buhari was scheduled to travel on Friday for the 49th Ordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) taking place in Dakar, Senegal.
The President has however sent his Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo to represent him at the Summit.
This is the third time President Buhari is cancelling his trips at the last minute in the last forthnight due to what a top source in the State House called a “recurring ear problem” otherwise known as Meniere Disease.
According to the sources, the President has for about two weeks been complaining of earing difficulties, severe pains and strange sound in the ear.
He is presently being treated at the State House by his personal physician and other experts.
President Buhari had on Thursday cancelled his much-publicised trip to Rivers state for the official flag-off of the Ogoni clean-up.
The talk of the President’s planned trip had been in the news since last week with many seeing the trip as an opportunity for him to close the seeming gap between himself and the Niger Delta people.
The clean-up of the polluted Ogoni land had been recommended by the United Nations Environmental Programme in 2011.
While the President’s advance teams had been on ground in Rivers since Wednesday, the President failed to show up on Thursday morning and instead sent Osinbajo to represent him.
The President had similarly cancelled a trip to Lagos two weeks ago and sent Osinbajo to represent him.
While no reason was given for the cancellation of the Lagos trip, the President confessed to a group of editors he met last week that he had ear infection and had to cancel the trip.
A statement signed by spokesman to the Vice President, Laolu Akande confirmed that Osinbajo will be representing his boss in Dakar this weekend.
“President Muhammadu Buhari would be represented by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, at the 49th Ordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) holding this weekend in Dakar Senegal.
Prof. Osinbajo will be leaving for Dakar today and is expected back in Abuja on Sunday,” Akande’s statement read in part.
