clipped from news.bbc.co.uk

Nigeria’s ailing President Yar’Adua breaks silence

President Umaru Yar’Adua has been abroad for weeks

Nigeria’s president, who has not been seen since going into hospital in Saudi Arabia for heart treatment in November, has told the BBC he is recovering.

In his first interview since then, Umaru Yar’Adua said he hoped to make “tremendous progress” and to return to Nigeria to resume his duties.

Nigerian opposition parties have been demanding evidence about the true state of Mr Yar’Adua’s health.