Jonathan angry over leakage of Patience’s illness

Investigations by Punch Newspapers in Abuja on Tuesday indicated that the President and those closed to him had planned to keep Mrs. Jonathan’s trip “a top secret.”

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Mrs. Jonathan is presently in Germany, where she was said to have undergone surgery for ruptured appendicitis. But the Presidency had denied that the President’s wife was ill, saying that she was only resting abroad.

Her spokesman, Mr. Ayo Osinlu, said the President’s wife travelled out of the country to take a “moment’s rest.”

It was learnt that the President had thought that his wife whereabouts would be kept under wraps by those considered to be his close associates of Patience aids and few security officials, who it was gathered, knew about her movement. Investigations further showed that in order to avoid leakage of information on her trip, only those considered to be “very trusted” aides knew about it. However, when the story was published by a online medium, Saharareporters, the President was said to be angry that there were moles among those considered to be trusted aides.

A Presidency source said, “The President is angry that the story could still leak when a very few staff of the President and security men knew about the travelling. “He had thought that the movement could be kept secret as planned, but was astonished when news started filtering on the Internet about the sickness that made her to travel. “At some point, he felt bad that despite the overhaul of the security system in the Villa, the movement of his wife would still not be kept secret.”

 It was learnt that the entire security system in the Presidential Villa had been overhauled more than three times since the President assumed office. Before now, the President’s aides were said to have thought that some foreign media houses working at the Presidential Villa were responsible for the leakage of information in the Presidency. However, the postage of some photographs on the Internet and online medium were said to have changed the thought.

It was learnt that though the President had not ordered any probe, but “is likely going to order the overhauling of security in the Villa.” Presidency sources said the President felt that some “elements who took the photographs of a son of late President Umaru Yar’Adua in the Villa with Ak47 and some new naira notes of one thousand denominations might still be in the Villa.”

The President, it was further gathered, might direct that some aides of his aides and that of his wife be either transferred or removed.