A former media aide to the late President Muhammadu Buhari, Garba Shehu, has said that Buhari’s frequent medical trips abroad were a matter of personal preference and not a dismissal of Nigeria’s healthcare system.

Shehu made this clarification during an appearance on Channels Television’s “Inside Sources” program on Saturday.

His comments were a direct response to remarks made by Femi Adesina, another of Buhari’s former spokespersons.

Adesina had previously suggested that Buhari “could have died a long time ago” if he had relied solely on Nigerian hospitals, citing a perceived lack of expertise within the country

However, Shehu contradicted Adesina’s view, asserting that Buhari remained under the care of Nigerian doctors throughout his presidency, implying that the foreign trips were not due to a lack of local medical competence.

Shehu said, “I think it is wrong to assume that he fenced himself off from the Nigerian medical system.

“He had a Nigerian doctor, a chief personal physician and a state house clinic, also led by a medical consultant, a distinguished doctor of many years of practice.”

He emphasised that the president’s medical team was always available to meet his immediate health needs.

“In terms of the immediacy of his own medical needs, they were always present to administer to his own needs,” Shehu added.

While acknowledging Buhari’s consistent visits abroad for treatment, Shehu said this was due to the president’s longstanding medical relationship overseas.

“As for his attachment to his past practice abroad for his medicals, he had an attachment to that.

“It was not that he was disrespectful of Nigeria’s medical practice or that he didn’t believe,” he said.

Shehu also highlighted the presence of Nigerian-trained doctors working globally, noting that their competence is recognised worldwide.

“For most people who also travel abroad and they need to see doctors — I have experienced this in America — you go into the office of the doctor and you find that it’s a Nigerian surgeon, it’s a Nigerian doctor,” he noted.

President Muhammadu Buhari died on July 13 in a London clinic after a prolonged illness.

He was buried at his residence in Daura, Katsina State, on July 15. (The PUNCH)