Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari will on Friday travel to London for a vacation.
The President’s media adviser, Femi Adesina said on Wednesday that Buhari has informed the country’s senate and house of representatives.
“In compliance with Section 145 (1) of the 1999 Constitution, a letter has been transmitted to the President of the Senate, and the Speaker, House of Representatives to that effect”, Adesina said in a statement.
President Buhari in the past has traveled to London for medical check ups. It is not clear if on this latest trip he will seek medical attention.
The 10-day working holiday in London by President Buhari is coming at a time that one of the senior members of his party defected to the opposition.
Bukola Saraki who is the President of the Senate left the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) to the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) on Wednesday.
This is seen as a major blow to President Muhammadu Buhari’s bid for re-election in next year’s polls.
Saraki’s defection follows similar move by more than twelve Nigerian senators from the ruling APC last month.
Another 37 members of the house of representatives also announced their defection from APC.
Impact of defections
The recent defections mean that the main opposition People’s Democratic Party now has a majority in the Senate.
The PDP following the defection will now have more than 58 senators, the APC will have some 48 senators in the 109-member house of representatives.
Mr Saraki says the APC has failed to live up to its promises since winning the 2015 election.
The 75-year-old leader is struggling to deal with his country’s economic crisis as millions remain jobless. He has also failed to contain ethnic clashes and the insurgency of militant group Boko Haram.
Source: Africafeeds.com
