By Shola Abayomi.
President Muhammadu Buhari is reported to have ignored the stringent travel conditions set by the Kaduna State Government, following his approval of Ibrahim El-Zakzaky’s trip to India for medical treatment.
Recall that the Kaduna government, led by Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, had set 7 conditions which it insisted El-Zakzaky, the leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) must fulfill before being allowed to jet out of the country.
However, emerging reports claim that President Buhari okayed El-Zakzaky’s trip to India, as approved by the Kaduna State High Court, after considering an intelligence report on the matter.
The President was said to have been counseled by the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and Department of State Services (DSS) on the need to obey the court ruling.
The agencies warned that the possibility of El-Zakzaky meeting the rigid conditions might take a prolonged process, hence, heightening the security implication of his continued detention.
The President was also prevailed upon by appeals of the international community which had urged the Federal Government to properly manage the issue, taking into account El-Zakzaky’s failing health and his wild supporters.
The IMN leader, and his wife, Zeenat, departed Nigeria for India at about 6:30 pm yesterday, accompanied by DSS officials and family members.
See conditions set by the Kaduna State Government:
1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall confirm the appointments of the defendants/applicants with the Medanta Hospital, India, and undertake all necessary diplomatic arrangements and protocols to ensure compliance with the conditions of the medical leave.
2. Each of the defendants/applicants shall undertake to return to Nigeria to continue their trial as soon as they are discharged from the hospital, and shall also be responsible for the cost of their travel, treatment and living expenses while on their medical leave.
3. Each of the defendants/applicants shall produce two prominent and reliable persons as sureties, one being a first class chief/emir of national repute and the other a prominent person within Kaduna State who shall undertake to produce the defendants whenever they are needed. The sureties must also produce evidence of landed property within Kaduna State.
4. The Federal Government of Nigeria shall obtain from the Government of India an irrevocable guarantee that it will not entertain any application by the defendants/applicants or any third party seeking asylum under any guise or conferring the status of political prisoners or any other status aside from being medical patients on the defendants/applicants and shall also restrain the defendants/applicants from any act inimical to the corporate existence of Nigeria.
5. Each of the defendants/applicants shall undertake in writing, endorsed by their Counsel, that while on medical treatment in India, they shall do nothing to jeopardize the ongoing trial, the peace and security of Nigeria and the laws of the Republic of India in whatever form.
6. Security agents of the Federal Government of Nigeria shall escort the defendants/applicants and remain with them throughout the duration of their treatment in India and thereafter shall return with them after their discharge from the hospital.
7. The Nigerian High Commission in India shall undertake prior vetting and grant consent before any visitor has access to the defendants/applicants while in the Republic of India.”