By Saidu Idris
365Daily – Following widespread outrage over President Muhammadu Buhari’s absence at the burial ceremony of the late Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru and 10 other members of the Armed Forces in a plane crash while on national assignment, one of the president’s Media Aides, Malam Garba Shehu, has explained that his absence could be because he did not want to cause a traffic gridlock.
The officers, who died in Kaduna on Friday, were buried in Abuja on Saturday.
Neither Buhari nor his vice, Yemi Osinbajo, attended the funeral.
Shehu said while appearing on an ARISE TV programme, that though he has not discussed the issue with Buhari, he knows the president hates causing gridlock.
To buttress his point, he said the President sometimes observes Juma’at prayers at Aso Rock in order not to cause traffic gridlock when roads are closed.
He further said: “I was in Europe myself on assignment and I have not spoken to the president on this but let me give you just one example: the president is somebody who is so concerned about the safety and wellbeing of ordinary Nigerians on the streets.
“Do you know why he now prays his Juma’at in the State House and doesn’t go to the National Mosque? Because he doesn’t like this idea of closing roads, security men molesting people on the road for the President to have the right of way.
“These are small things for many people but they are important for President Muhammadu Buhari. So, it is a mourning situation and the president didn’t want to take away attention from that.”