Enugu State Governor, Mr. Sullivan Chime, has broken his silence on why he was absent from the state for about five months, declaring that he had to take the opportunity of his “accumulated leave” to undergo treatment for an ailment later discovered to be cancer of the nose.
He had left the state on September 19, 2012 after handing over to his deputy, Mr. Sunday Onyebuchi, who was the acting governor while he was away.
He spoke just as Cross River State Acting Governor, Mr. Efiok Cobham, said Tuesday that the governor, Senator Liyel Imoke, who has also been out of the state for months, was expected back this weekend.
Chime, who returned to Enugu last Friday amidst tumultuous welcome, told reporters on Monday night that his treatment for cancer, which lasted for 12 weeks, ended on December 14, 2012.
He said he would have returned immediately after he had finished his treatment, but had to delay his return based on the advice of his doctors.
According to him, by late January when he went for a review of his case, the doctors were shocked by his recovery rate which showed that the tumour had gone.
