ABUJA – A senior Islamic cleric said yesterday he had prayed with Nigerian president Umaru Yar’Adua, who has not been seen in public since last November, and said he believed he would recover after treatment for a heart ailment.
Ustaz Musa Mohammed, the chief imam of Nigeria’s National Mosque, said he and three other Islamic clerics prayed with Mr Yar’Adua during a 15-minute meeting at the president’s residence in the capital Abuja late on Thursday.
“We set up the meeting because we wanted to know the truth to see whether he is alive,” Mr Mohammed said. “We have now seen him and we are satisfied that he is recovering.”
He said Mr Yar’Adua (58) had some difficulty speaking.
Presidency officials could not immediately be reached for comment on the meeting.
The president has not made a public appearance since he left Nigeria for treatment in Saudi Arabia at the end of November. He was flown back to Nigeria two months ago, but remains too frail to govern.
His deputy, Goodluck Jonathan, has taken over executive powers in his absence.
Mr Yar’Adua’s secretive return raised fears that his inner circle of aides would fight to maintain their influence over Africa’s most populous nation and seek to undermine Mr Jonathan.
A power struggle at the top of the Opec member could paralyse the government, threaten an amnesty programme in the oil-producing Niger Delta and jeopardise reforms. Mr Jonathan has already sacked Mr Yar’Adua’s cabinet in a bid to assert his authority and ease political uncertainty. – (Reuters)