Patience Jonathan back

Moyo Fabiyi

Wife of Nigeria’s president, Patience Faka, returned to the country Wednesday afternoon after about two months overseas, declaring: “I am happy to be back”, in a voice that sounded a bit frail.

Mrs. Jonathan’s aircraft touched down at the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja at about 3 p.m.

She was received by hundreds of Nigerians including government officials, ministers, wives of governors, women from Bayelsa State and non-governmental organizations, NGOs.

In a brief interview session, the president’s wife denied media reports that she was flown abroad for the treatment of a terminal illness.

“I do not suffer from terminal illness. I did not go to the hospital mentioned. I did not even know the hospital,” Mrs. Jonathan said, adding that she was aware of the deaths that have occurred in Aso Rock such as General Sani Abacha, Mrs. Stella Obasanjo and former President Umaru Yar’Adua but does not believe death will be her portion in Aso Rock.

She thanked God who made it possible for her to return safely to Nigeria.

Patience also commended her husband Goodluck Jonathan, children, staff, and the ordinary men on the streets who have shown love and concern during her absence.

She did not say what kept her for so long abroad.

Patience later took a walk around the airport, acknowledging cheers from the crowd. A band of female and male courtiers from Bayelsa state were on hand at the Nnamdi Azikwe Airport in Abuja to give her a warm welcome. Some ministers, among them Diezani Alison Madueke, of the Petroleum Ministry were also at the airport to receive her.
She left the shores of Nigeria on 28 August, 2012 and was reportedly flown to Germany for the treatment of an undisclosed ailment. Throughout th period, the presidency refused to give the nation a clear picture of what she was suffering from.

P.M.NEWS had gathered that Patience was being treated for cancer of the uterus at Horst Schmidt Klinik in Wiesbaden, Germany.

Aso Rock’s denial of the information only helped to fuel an industry of speculations about the president’s wife, especially when she failed to show up with her husband when he attended the 67th session of the UN General Assembly in New York, United States, recently.

Throughout her absence, online news portals were abuzz with all sorts of reports.

A recent one even claimed that Mrs. Jonathan was being treated for Parkinson disease.

Earlier reports had it that Patience was operated upon for ruptured appendicitis at the German hospital.

Yet, there was another report that the surgical procedure on Mrs. Jonathan was to remove a potentially cancerous uterine fibroid.

There were also speculations that she had travelled to Dubai to have a procedure performed and returned to Nigeria where she developed complications which led to her sudden evacuation to Germany.

The Presidency did not help matters as it refused to come clean on the actual ailment of Patience. All the stories Nigerians were getting from Aso Rock were a web of lies about the fate of Patience. And this deepened speculations over the nature of sickness the wife of the President is suffering from.

At a point, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe told State House Correspondents when he was asked about the health of Patience that “ordinarily, I do not want to comment on this matter. Nigerians have gone through a lot of trauma in terms of leadership and death and ill luck and all that (in the past).

“Gen. Sani Abacha died in the Villa, Obasanjo’s wife (Stella) died in the Villa, (President Umaru) Yar’Adua lost his life in the Villa.

“I think even if it is a suggestion that the wife of the President is sick, what I will expect Nigerians to feel is empathy, not probing, not questioning (about her health).

“Have we become so disenchanted with leadership as to believe that the leadership is inhuman? I believe that the First Lady is hale and hearty. I want to leave it like that.”

President Jonathan was reported to have visited the German hospital where his wife was on admission, on his way to New York for the United Nations General Assembly several weeks ago.

He also visited the second time recently and it was shown on the NTA.

Anxiety over her absence heightened with Jonathan’s sudden return from Malawi and Botswana weeks ago, just two days into a trip that was billed to last for three days.

There were speculations that the President cut short his trip as a result of information he got on the sudden turn in the health of his wife.

The Presidency, however, denied this on grounds that the president had finished all aspects of the agenda of the visits to the two countries.

Contrarily however was the report that the Presidency actually demanded from his hosts in Botswana to cancel his other engagements, suddenly after getting a phone call from Nigeria.

The initial response of the Presidency was to debunk claims that the First Lady is ill and receiving medical attention.

Ayo Osinlu, the Chief Press Secretary to Mrs. Jonathan told journalists last month that his boss had gone to Germany to rest after the hectic schedule of presiding over the African First Ladies Mission held several weeks before then.

This was in response to initial speculations that Mrs. Jonathan was flown to the hospital after an initial treatment at State House Clinic, Abuja for alleged food poisoning.

The story of the First Lady’s admission at the German hospital came to light four days after she left the country on 28 August.