...As health budgets take N2.3tn with
State House Clinic gulping N6.2bn in six years
President Muhammadu Buhari has spent a total of 201 days in hospitals outside the country since his assumption of office on May 29, 2015.
Buhari’s preference for foreign medical care, has never been hidden even N6.2 billion has so far been allocated to State House Clinic while the Federal Ministry of Health has also so far been allocated N2.3tn from 2016 to date, going by the yearly appropriation acts available on the website of the Budget Office of the Federation.
The State House Clinic caters for the health needs of the President, Vice President, their families and members of staff of the Presidential Villa.
However, the Federal Ministry of Health received N250 billion in 2016, while the State House Clinic got N2.8bn In 2017, even as N304.1bn was allocated to the Ministry of Health and N331.7m to the State House Medical Centre respectively.
In 2018, the budget showed that the Federal Ministry of Health, had N356.4bn, while the presidential clinic received N1bn. In 2019, N372.7bn went to the ministry and the Villa medical centre got N798.8bn.
Also, in 2020, N414.4bn was budgeted for health as against N598.6m for the State House Medical Centre. The 2021 budget allocated N549.8bn to the Ministry of Health and N641.1m for the presidential clinic.
The recently signed 2021 Supplementary Appropriation Act allocated to the ministry N83.5bn for National Primary Healthcare Development Agency, as well as N1.68bn for National Agency for the Control of AIDS.
Buhari left for the UK on June 6, 2016, for his first medical vacation, following reports that he had an ear infection. He returned on June 19, 2016 after 13 days.
On January 19, 2017, Buhari again travelled to the UK on medical leave and returned on March 10, 2017, after spending 51 days.
About 40 days later, Buhari furthermore, travelled to the UK for another medical attention on May 8, 2017. He remained in UK till August 19, 2017, spending 104 consecutive days, a record which surpassed that of the late President Umaru Yar’Adua.
After attending the 72nd UN General Assembly, on September 21, 2017, he travelled from the US to the UK for medical purposes and returned to Abuja on September 25, 2017.
On May 8, 2018, four days after arriving in Nigeria, Buhari returned to the UK for medical reasons and he returned on May 11.
The President again travelled to London on a working leave on August 3, 2018 and returned on the 18th, spending a total of 16 days. His handlers said during interviews that “he may just see his doctors briefly during the visit.”
On April 25, 2019, Buhari arrived in the UK for a 10-day “private visit,” returning on May 5, 2018, though information was not given on the purpose of the trip.
Again, on November 2, 2019, he proceeded on a 15-day “private visit” to London, following bilateral talks in Saudi Arabia. He returned to the country on November 17.
In 2020, the President did not leave the country for a single medical trip, presumably due to travel restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
But on March 30, 2021, he resumed his medical visits with two-week trip to London.
On June 24, the President postponed another planned medical trip to the UK. He, however, departed the country for London on Monday to attend an education summit and have a check-up. He is expected to return in the second week of August.
The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, in an appearance on Channels Television last Monday, stated that his boss preferred to have his check-up in the United Kingdom as Nigerian doctors did not have his medical profile.
“President Buhari has been with the same doctors and medical team for upward of 40 years,” he said when asked why the President couldn’t have been treated in Nigeria.
“It is advisable that he continues with that who knows his medical history and that is why he comes to London to see them. He has used the same medical team for over 40 years. Once you can afford it, then stay with the team that has your history.”
