Interesting article on The Guardian Nigeria


In response to inquiries on the cost of the medical treatment of President Muhammadu Buhari abroad, the other day, Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information deemed it a matter of ‘national security’ and a moral [issue].

It may be appropriate to accept the minister’s response for the reason that abjectly immature opponents of Buhari, his government, and even his political party , the All Progressives Congress (APC), might just exploit such information to score cheap points. Indeed, it is bad manner to trivialise or to exploit for self-interest or political gains, matters of the health of any man at all, not to talk of the President of the country. In principle, health is the greatest measure of wealth so, no monetary sum can be too much to secure the well-being of any man. It is not appropriate, therefore, to ask, except out of genuine concern and clearly pure motive, the why and how of the expenditure on the health of the president. As noted by this newspaper in an earlier editorial, the African culture forbids mockery of old age or making a fuss about such matters as concern elders.

Nevertheless, it would be equally unfair to presume that question by a citizen and a member of the electorate about the medical expenses by the president is necessarily ill-motivated. For example, the constitutional obligation of the mass media to ask questions about conduct of government is stipulated in Section 22 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) that ‘the press, radio, television and other agencies of the mass media shall at all times be free to uphold the fundamental objectives contained in [Chapter II] and uphold the responsibility and accountability of the Government to the people.’ And, of course, there is a fundamental reason that the media must do this not for its (sectional|) self, but for ‘the people’ as a collective entity. This reason is to be found in Section 14 (2) (a) that says ‘sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria from whom government, through [the constitution] derives all its powers and authority.’

https://guardian.ng/opinion/again-on-buharis-health-and-expenses/