Sound of silence: Nigeria’s president
Vice-president Yemi Osinbajo is set to chair his second weekly cabinet meeting today since his boss Muhammadu Buhari left for London on May 7th. It is the president’s second trip to see his doctor this year. And, as during their 74-year-old leader’s earlier, six-week stint in Britain, Nigerians still don’t know what ails him. Grandees are already jostling for position. Mr Osinbajo is a respected technocrat, but has no political base. He is also from Lagos: northern politicians say if Mr Buhari is forced to step down ahead of the 2019 election, his replacement should, under the unwritten principle of rotating the presidency between north and south, remain one of them. Earlier this week the government was forced to deny rumours of the president’s death. Revealing the real state of his health—or even having him make a public appearance—would help dampen the speculation.
Credit: The Economics
