London trip: Buhari returns to Abuja

President Muhammadu Buhari has cut short his two-week private visit to London by two days as he arrived the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja on Friday evening.
The president, who was on official visit to Saudi Arabia before the commencement of the private visit to London on November 2, was initially scheduled to return to Nigeria on November 17.
The president attended the third Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he later performed the Lesser Hajj alongside Governors Atiku Bagudu, Aminu Masari and Babagana Zulum of Kebbi, Katsina and Borno States.
The Nigerian leader was far away in Saudi Arabia when the Supreme Court on October 30, dismissed the appeal by the Peoples Democratic Party and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar challenging his victory at the February 23 presidential poll.
Buhari returned to Abuja on the day the apex court ruled that he was “eminently qualified” to contest the February 23 presidential election.
The full judgement delivered on Friday provided explanations for the apex court’s summary decision of Oct. 30, which dismissed the PDP’s appeal.
In the full judgement, the Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal which held that Buhari possessed the requisite educational qualification to contest the poll.
The presidential aircraft conveying the Nigerian leader and few of his aides landed at the airport about 9.40p.m, with the temperature out at 26 degrees centigrade.
Buhari was received on arrival by his Chief of Staff, Malam Abba Kyari, FCT Minister, Malam Muhammed Bello, some heads of security agencies and presidential aides.
The President had on November 10 met with his long time friend, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev. Justin Welby, at the Lambeth Palace, London.
The two last met in October 2018, when Welby was in Abuja as a keynote speaker at a conference on religious harmony, shortly before the conduct of the 2019 general elections in Nigeria.
The Nigerian leader also on Wednesday in London, met with the management of Pearson Educational Group.