With the return of President Muhammadu Buhari from
London, United Kingdom, where he spent 104 days receiving medical treatment,
the cabal in the Presidency has again gained control of power and influence, it was learnt.
Penultimate Saturday, the President returned to the
country to a warm reception by jubilant Nigerians, who thronged the Nnamdi
Azikiwe Airport, Abuja and the roads leading to Aso Villa. Thousands of
Buhari’s well-wishers also took to the streets in other parts of the country to
rejoice over his long-awaited return.
The Buhari presidency has been dogged by persistent
rumours and speculation that a group comprising some members of the President’s
extended family and friends are the powers behind the throne. This group is
said to have the ear of the President, influence policy-making and determine
those who get major appointments.
Among those identified as being members of the cabal
were: the President’s nephew, Mamman Daura; the father to the Minister of the
Federal Capital Territory (Muhammed Bello) Musa Bello; the President’s Chief of
Staff, Abba Kyari; Samaila Isa Funtua and a few others.
While Buhari was away, Osinbajo who stood for him as
Acting President held sway and won the admiration of many Nigerians and
foreigners for the life he injected into government. Although the Vice
President was said to have consulted the President in London before taking
major decisions, he reportedly did not consult the members of the cabal whose
influence ebbed considerably during the period.
A source who is close to the president said, “While
Buhari was away, they tried to ensure that Osinbajo was not in control of the
government, by keeping away information from Osinbajo. Kyari’s main job in the
villa is to make Osinbajo look bad.”
However, with the return of the President, the cabal is
said to be back in power. Reliable sources who are privy to the goings-on in
the corridors of power described the President’s return as ‘bittersweet’.
They claimed that with the President’s return, the cabal
had taken over again.
“They seem to have a disproportionate influence on what
he (Buhari) does, what he says, and who he appoints. This cannot be in doubt;
it is the fact of the matter,” one of the sources said.
Speaking with SUNDAY PUNCH on Saturday, a former member
of the House of Representatives in the Second Republic, Dr. Junaid Mohammed,
confirmed the return of the cabal.
He said, “Off the cuff, one must mention Mamman Daura
because he’s the kingpin and, in actual fact, he wields more power than the
President. He knows; the President knows and those of them who are in
government also know. After him, you have to mention the father to the Minister
of the Federal Capital Territory, Musa Bello.
“The son was made a minister, even though he has always
been a card-carrying member of the Peoples Democratic Party. And, in fact, he
was chairman of the National Hajj Commission for four years in a PDP
administration. Then, when Buhari won, they made him a minister. Also, you have
to mention the Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, who is the pre-eminent lackey and
errand boy of the mafia. You also have to include one character called Dr. Mahmud
Tukur, the younger brother of Bamanga Tukur.
“Essentially, you can say that between the Buhari
administration and the Kaduna Mafia is a revolving door. Once you come from the
Kaduna Mafia, you occupy a very important position and there is no doubt about that
— the same revolving-door policy was operated when he (Buhari) was Chairman of
the Petroleum Trust Fund.
“The names I mentioned are the prominent members of the
Kaduna Mafia. Again, it is not a (definitive) list because they keep coming in
and out. But one thing about them is that they believe they have a divine right
to dominate the North, and if they dominate the North, (they believe) they have
a divine right to dominate Nigeria.”
Speaking also, a chieftain of the Arewa Consultative
Forum, Alhaji Mohammed Abdulrahman, who also said he was a member of the famed
Kaduna Mafia, confirmed the existence of the cabal and its undue influence on
the President. He added that the most powerful member of the group had always
exerted a great deal of influence on Buhari right from his days as a military
head of state.
According to him, Gen. Tunde Idiagbon, Buhari’s
lieutenant during his time as a military head of state, often complained about the hold that Daura had on
Buhari.
“Since his days as the military head of state, Buhari has
been under the influence of Daura. It was because of the funny ways Daura and
his people acted during Buhari’s regime that led IBB to overthrow him. You know
what? Even Tunde Idiagbon complained about Mamman Daura.
“Whenever we went to Lagos in those days, we spent some
time in his house and discussed national issues. Idiagbon discussed with us
most of the actions he was taking then. Idiagbon said people like Daura were
manipulating him (Buhari),” Abdulrahman disclosed.
Mohammed added that the cabal perfected a strategy that
had helped them to sideline the vice president. “What they do is, they make
sure they second-guess Osinbajo, what he’s going to do and then they go ahead
and get Buhari to commit to a contrary opinion or a contrary line of action.
They first try to see what he is likely to do; they don’t go and tell Buhari,
‘This is what Osinbajo is planning to do.’ They get Buhari to commit —
sometimes, publicly — to a view, policy or thrust, which is contrary to what
Osinbajo has been trying to bring up as a policy. They do that by frustrating
him (the vice president) and making sure that he doesn’t have his way.”
However, the elder statesman did not spare the vice
president, whom he said was attracting self-inflicted problems to himself.
“Osinbajo is a victim of his blunders because his
advisers are tribal. It is a church cabal. He doesn’t have balanced opinions
coming from all parts of the country. So, he ends up making some terrible
blunders and they (Buhari’s cabal) find it easy to checkmate him.”
Expressing his fears for Buhari’s administration’s
capacity to succeed, the ACF chieftain said.
“With the cabal still in the Villa, there is no way
Buhari will succeed as a president. It is not for nothing that Aisha (the First
Lady) cried out. Do you remember when she spoke about the hyenas and the
jackals? They are the ones controlling Buhari now. The President must muster
courage and drive away the cabal he has surrounded himself with. The cabal is a
bunch of hustlers, fleecing the president and his family. They are not human
beings. They are not interested in Buhari’s success.”
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media
and Publicity, Garba Shehu, told SUNDAY PUNCH that he would not react to the
claim, while the Senior Special Assistant to the Acting President on Media and
Publicity, Laolu Akande, could not be reached as he did not respond to phone
calls and messages.
Source :PUNCH
Tags
Politics