By
Fawaz Adebisi
The President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari has revealed that he is an AS patient, as he had lost two of his children to sickle cell.
The President made this known in a documentary that was played at a private dinner on Friday NIght, while marking his birthday.
The dinner was organized by his family and close associates at the State House Banquet Hall.
According to him, he lost two of his children by his late wife, Safinatu, to sickle cell anemia.
This explains why, when he married Aisha Buhari, the first lady, he stipulated that his second wife must have the AA genotype in order to prevent his children from inheriting the S from his AS genotype.
Some Nigerians who believed Buhari to be long deceased and replaced by a body double dubbed “Jibril of Sudan” also claimed that he was “not a funny joke.”
The President claimed that the untrue rumor was the product of some troublemakers who enjoy creating confusion.
When asked about the rumor in the documentary interview, Buhari said, “Yes! People said I am somebody from Sudan. I didn’t bother with the name. Nigerians have mischievous ways of explaining themselves.”
When asked if he thinks these allusions amusing, he responded, “No. Because the people who made those statements were only trying to be cheeky, it is not funny. They seek to deflect focus away from the crucial matter. The infrastructure must be built, and people must be made aware that they must work hard to live well. Without winning the respect of their community or anything else, they simply want to enjoy life.
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo characterized Buhari as a straightforward, kind, and excellent leader earlier, when he proposed a toast for the celebrant.
“I invite your excellences, ladies and gentlemen, to join me in proposing this toast to an exemplary leader, a forthright and honest man, a good and kind man, and a man who has led this country with great courage, determination and commitment for so many years. Osinbajo said in a speech praising Buhari for his “great courage and commitment” in leading the country.
“We pray that the almighty God will preserve his life for very many years to come and that he will live all of these many years in good health, peace, joy and with the love of all of our country men.”
In attendance were governors of Kebbi, Atiku Bagudu; Katsina, Aminu Masari; former Ekiti state Governor, Kayode Fayemi; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, the President’s Chief of Staff, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari; cabinet members, family members, captains of industry including Chairman of AriseTV and the Thisday Group, Nduka Obaigbena, among others.
