Nigerian leader returns after long treatment in London

By Rafiu Ajakaye

LAGOS, Nigeria (AA) - President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday evening returned to Nigeria after spending 103 days in London where he had undergone treatment for undisclosed ailments.

The Eagle One, the official aircraft of the president, touched down in the capital Abuja a few minutes before 5 p.m. local time (1600GMT). The 74-year-old leader was welcomed at the airport by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, cabinet ministers, security chiefs, and several party leaders

Thousands of citizens lined the road to welcome the "Lion King", an appellation by which Buhari is now known because of what is considered to be his sterling anti-corruption stance.

“President Buhari is expected to speak to Nigerians in a broadcast by 7 a.m. [0600GMT] on Monday, Aug. 21, 2017,” his spokesman Femi Adesina said in a statement early Saturday to announce his imminent arrival.

“He thanks all Nigerians who have prayed ceaselessly for his recovery and well-being since the beginning of the health challenge,” the statement added.

Buhari’s prolonged absence had raised tension, with the opposition and certain activists constantly asking him to step down on health grounds.

The 74-year-old leader had handed over power to his deputy when he left the country on May 7 by formally writing to parliament, thus preventing a power vacuum and a constitutional crisis akin to what Nigeria endured in 2009/2010 following the protracted illness of late President Umaru Yar’Adua.

Buhari’s latest absence for medical reasons was the second this year alone and the third since he took office on May 29, 2015.