Observers question the administration’s commitment to healthcare reform in light of recurring foreign medical visits.
President Bola Tinubu’s state visit to Saint Lucia is reportedly a strategic “decoy” to facilitate a concealed medical consultation, according to insider sources. The trip, facilitated by Gilbert Chagoury—Saint Lucia’s Honorary Consul to the Vatican—allegedly allowed Tinubu’s medical team to meet with him away from Nigerian media attention.
“It’s a clever decoy,” one insider revealed. “The only reason why President Tinubu is in St. Lucia is that it provides a good decoy to arrange for his doctors to meet him without the prying eyes of Nigerian journalists since Gilbert Chagouri is the Honorary Consul of St Lucia to the Vatican.”
Critics note that this move follows a pattern of opaque health-related travels, mainly to France, raising public concern over transparency and trust in the administration’s commitment to improving Nigeria’s healthcare system. In response, the Presidency denied any subterfuge, asserting that the visit aligns with Tinubu’s “Four D’s” foreign policy agenda and seeks to strengthen diplomatic and economic ties with Saint Lucia.