Lagos, Nigeria (CNN) -- Nigeria's ailing president has broken two months of silence to assure his countrymen that contrary to speculation he is alive and intending to return to power soon. President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua this week gave his first media interview since being admitted to a hospital in Saudi Arabia in late November where he is being treated for acute pericarditis, an inflammation of tissue around the heart. His absence has created a power vacuum in Africa's most populous country, as Yar'Adua has not formally handed his presidential duties to Vice-president Goodluck Jonathan. In a phone interview with the BBC from his hospital bed Tuesday, President Yar'Adua said he was recovering from his treatment.
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Nigeria's president says in a phone interview that he is alive and recovering from treatment
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Yar'Adua has not been seen since leaving Nigeria for treatment in Saudi Arabia in late November
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His absence has created a power vacuum in the African country
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Protesters, the Senate call for more information on his whereabouts and state of health
The Nigerian @placeholder is seeking also information on the president's whereabouts and health.
The Senate had earlier considered sending a delegation to @placeholder.