Daily Trust (Abuja) | 9 may 2010|AllAfrica|

Goodluck Jonathan who was sworn in yesterday as Nigeria‘s president following the death of President Umaru Musa Yar’adua did not attend yesterday’s funeral of the late president. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo was also not in Katsina yesterday.

Jonathan’s absence was noticed when the two presidential planes landed at the Katsina Airport without him on board. This was contrary to the expectation of many dignitaries and people of the state in particular who waited for hours under the scorching sun at the airport to see the president’s arrival for the funeral.

Neither the Katsina State government nor the Federal Government delegation led by Speaker House of Representatives Dimeji Bankole explained Jonathan’s absence from Katsina yesterday.

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However, Speaker Bankole led the Federal Government delegation that arrived at the airport on board a presidential plane with registration number 5N-FGE. Other members of the delegation were the national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Prince Vincent Ogbulafor (PDP) national deputy chairman Dr Bello Halliru, minister of defence Prince Kayode Tokumbo Kayode, minister of police affairs Alhaji Adamu Maina Waziri and minister of works Senator Sanusi Daggash.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo was also conspicuously absent at the funeral. Nobody was said to have represented the former president at the funeral. Daily Trust gathered that the former president shunned the funeral for fear of being booed by people of the state who were said to be unhappy with him over his recent uncomplimentary comments over Yar’adua’s health. Some of the former president’s close aides who turned up for the funeral said Obasanjo’s absence could not be deliberate, saying there must be cogent reasons for his absence.

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