There are rising concerns for the health of President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria the former general on whom hopes for serious reforms and a clampdown on corruption have been pinned. This January, the 74-year-old president went to the UK for what aides termed a "medical vacation". Three weeks later Buhari sent a formal request to the parliament to extend that leave and only returned to his country in March. Since then he has missed two consecutive cabinet meetings and at the end of last month, most unusually failed to attend Friday prayers. Nigerians fear a repeat of 2010 when president Umaru Yar'Adua died in office and was succeeded by his deputy Goodluck Jonathan, whose incompetence and toleration of rampant corruption demonstrated that his incumbency was anything but good luck for the country. Yet during Buhari's absence, his vice-president Yemi Osinbajo proved a competent substitute for his boss. In particular, having chaired a cabinet meeting at which dissident leaders from the oil-rich Niger Delta were heard, Osinbajo then went to visit the Delta himself. This trip was welcomed by locals whose complaint is that while their region contributes the greater part of the country's wealth, they do not receive commensurate benefits. Indeed, this important eastern region, which from 1967 fought and lost a bitter three-year war to break away as the state of Biafra, has been widely neglected by the government in Abuja. When he was elected in 2015, Buhari seemed to mark an end to chaotic and corrupt government. He put new vim into the military's campaign against Boko Haram terrorists in the northeast of the country, firing failed commanders and promoting promising officers. The battle against the terrorists is far from won but they have suffered a series of telling reverses, which gives hope that their obscene insurgency can finally be defeated. But as Buhari himself commented ruefully, just as he assumed office, the international oil price was weakening. Nigeria's finances, already plundered by successive kleptocratic administrations, were in a complete mess. He sought, but failed to get, parliament's approval for a $30 billion loan from the international markets. Meanwhile, food prices have soared, tens of thousands of jobs have been lost and families are suffering the consequences. Buhari's crackdown on corruption has stuttered though it is recognized that he has sought, perhaps not always successfully, to run a tight ship within his own administration. But it could be argued that in a country where payola has become endemic, a far more vigorous campaign is needed. While everyone must join in the prayers for the Nigerian president's recovery, the point could be reached, perhaps sooner rather than later, for Buhari to take the wise but difficult decision to step down in favor of his more charismatic deputy, who shares his anti-corruption and economic reform platform. The last thing that Nigeria needs is political instability from which thieving officials and politicians can take further advantage. This is the populous and dynamic country that ought to be the most prosperous in Africa. The fact that it is not is a stinging indictment of years of muddle and misrule. Buhari was elected on a promise of strong leadership. Sadly, the tough question has to be, is he still strong enough to lead?
