The Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, the Office of the First Lady, Mr Aliyu Abdullah, has parried questions demanding Aisha Buhari’s whereabouts during an interview on television.
While speaking on a Channels Television programme, Abdullahi had been asked the whereabouts of the First Lady, but he tendered an apology and said he was not on air to discuss such issue.
Abdullah, who spoke from Kaduna State, stated that the First Lady was entitled to her privacy and she could decide to answer such questions or not.
SaharaReporters had exclusively reported on December 15 that Aisha had been in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, since September after the wedding of her daughter, Hanan, and she had therefore not been involved in any government activity.
SaharaReporters had gathered that the First Lady was not in a hurry to return, despite spending over three months, as she reportedly stated that the Aso Rock Villa was not secure for her family.
This came especially with a shooting incident in June which caused panic among the Villa occupants.
The last public event the First Lady held in the country was on September 4, when a flamboyant wedding was held for President Muhammadu Buhari’s daughter, Hanan, and Mohammed Turad.
When asked during the television interview where the First Lady was at the moment, Abdullah said, “I am sorry. This is not part of what I was invited here to discuss in your studio.
“I would not be speaking on that because it is not part of what we agreed for me to come and discuss. So let us leave that issue out of the interview, please.
“Let me say it this way again, the First Lady, although married to the President, nevertheless is a citizen of this country, who is entitled to her right to privacy.
“So, I think if she chooses not to speak on a particular matter, she is entitled to her privacy and that is where I wish to leave the issue as of now. It is her right and she did not choose to speak on it.”
