Second Republic Vice President, Dr. Alex Ekwueme, was Sunday morning flown abroad for continued medical treatment.
Ekwueme collapsed in his Enugu home and was rushed to a hospital in the town, where was reported to be stable but in a serious situation.
President Muhammadu Buhari was reported to have decided on flying the number two man during the Shehu Shagri administration in the Second Republic abroad for treatment.
Vanguard reports that Ekwueme was brought to the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu with a National Orthopedic Hospital Enugu, SUV ambulance at about 7: 26 am and driven straight into the tarmac, where he was taken into a waiting air ambulance with registration number N605 JA.
According to the report, the white Air Ambulance was said to have arrived the airport late Saturday evening and spent the night at the airport. He was transferred into the aircraft in the presence of his family members who escorted him to the airport.
The aircraft took off from the tarmac at about 8: 37am with the family members waving to whish him a safe trip. Among the family members present, included Ekwueme’s daughter Mrs. Onyemelukwe, who is a running mate to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, governorship candidate for Saturday’s gubernatorial election in Anambra State. The family members had earlier declined comments on the former vice presidents illness, saying that they were not in the mood to speak to the press and did not need any media coverage.
Vanguard further reported that it’s State Correspondent in Enugu, Mr Dennis Agbo, who witnessed the event was attacked by soldiers, policemen and other airport security officials before they forcefully confiscated his camera, mobile phone and other working tools.
Some of the security men who were attached to Ekwueme as well as his family members forcefully deleted all the pictures of the Air Ambulance from his camera and mobile phone which they seized, threatening to visit him personally, if the story of the incident was published
Agbo was briefly detained at one of the offices in the airport, where his mobile phone and empty camera were later returned to him.
