By Gideon Njoku
Speculations are running riot over the visit of First Lady, Aisha Buhari, to the residence of the Minister for Transportation, Rotimi Chibuke Amaechi.
In what has been described as unusual, Mrs Buhari paid a congratulatory visit to Amaechi and his wife, Judith, at their residence in Abuja. Accompanying the First Lady was her usual entourage.
The visit, the First Lady said, was to congratulate Amaechi on his turbaning, on Saturday, by the Emir of Daura, President Buhari’s Emir, Dr. Farouk Umar, as Dan Amanar of Daura, meaning “the trusted one.”
The Emir said Amaechi deserved the honor for the developmental projects he sited in Daura, including a University, and an international railway which connected Katsina to Niger Republic.
Before Amaechi was turbanned, speculations had surfaced that Buhari was seriously eyeing him as his possible successor. His turbanning gave the speculation more wind than before. Now, Mrs Buhari’s visit to him has upped the ante.
For the records, Amaechi is not the only high profile politician turbanned by the Emir of Daura. But he is the only one visited by Mrs Buhari just to congratulate him.
Before Amaechi, the Emir had turbanned both Senate Chief Whip, Orji Kalu, and two-term Governor of Imo State, and now Senator representing Imo West Senatorial District, Rochas Okorocha. In appreciation, Okorocha had promised to build a University for the Emirate where tuition and accommodation will be free.
The visit to Amaechi was made public by Mrs Buhari who posted photographs of the visit with a comment:
“I was received by the Hon. Minister of Transportation, Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi and his dear wife, Dame Judith, when I paid them congratulatory visit for his coronation as the Dan Amana of Daura by the Daura Emirate Council.”
