Lagos. A Nigerian state governor and a critic of President Muhammadu Buhari has claimed the ailing leader had been placed on life support.

Mr Ayo Fayose, the governor of Ekiti State in the South West, faulted the assurances of the government and asserted that the Nigerian leader would need a miracle to survive the ailment.

“Available and verifiable facts from London and within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), confirmed that the president’s health status has worsened and could only be revived through a miracle from God," Mr Fayose said on Wednesday.

He claimed that President Buhari was at the West-End London hospital and has been on life support since June 6.

Brain damage

The Federal Government last Sunday released a voice message of President Buhari to Nigerians and Muslims as they celebrated Eid-ul-Fitr.

The voice message, in Hausa language, was broadcast by the BBC Hausa service.

The message was meant to clear insinuations that President Buhari had speech impairment and brain damage.

Dignified silence

But Mr Fayose criticised the Federal Government and described President Buhari’s handlers as a “cabal” who would not allow him to resign to prevent the country from an avoidable crisis.

The Ekiti State Governor said the president had spent 53 days in London to attend to his health challenges, yet there had been no official information on his whereabouts.

“Like every other Nigerian, I do not wish the president dead, I have therefore maintained dignified silence since we were told that the president embarked on his second medical trip abroad this year.

“However, the recorded audio message which was released as the president’s Ramadhan message to Nigerians, necessitated my setting the records straight today, ‘’ said Mr Fayose.

Allowed access

The governor doubted the audio message and said it was a "damage-control strategy aimed at further deceiving Nigerians.

“The audio message does not represent the truth as our president does not only have voice impairment, he has been on life support since June 6, 2017 at a West-End, London Hospital."

The Governor claimed that the First Lady, Mrs Aisha Buhari, was not allowed to see her husband during her last visit to the UK, but was not courageous enough to admit it.

"Only three Nigerians who are part of the president’s cabal are allowed access to Buhari. I will keep their identities for now."

The Federal Government was yet to respond to Governor Fayose's claims.