Fresh Crisis In Aso Rock As Aisha Buhari Attacks Mamman Daura, Garba Shehu
Nigeria’s First Lady has accused a close relative of President Muhammadu Buhari of issuing a presidential directive behind her husband.
Aisha Buhari, in a statement she signed and sent to Daily Trust newspaper, accused Mamman Daura of issuing a directive to a presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, not to recognise her office.
Mr Buhari had before his election in 2015 said he would not allow for the office of the First Lady. During Mr Buhari’s first term in office, the presidency repeatedly referred to Mrs Buhari as the ‘wife of the president.’
However, after the president’s re-election, Mrs Buhari released a statement saying she should henceforth be referred to as the First Lady and her office as the ‘Office of the First Lady’.
Since then, the presidency has referred to Mrs Buhari as the First Lady and President Buhari has also assigned official aides to her office.
The Controversy on Wednesday, however, Mrs Buhari accused Mr Daura and Mr Shehu of undermining her office.
“Nigeria’s development is hinged on the ability of public officials to execute their mandates professionally, and to be shining examples in their various areas of endeavor. It is not a good sign when officials abandoned their responsibility and start clutching at straws,” the first lady wrote in the statement she sent to Daily Trust.
Her spokesperson, Suleiman Haruna, confirmed to PREMIUM TIMES that Mrs Buhari authored the mail.
“As spokesperson of the President, he has the onerous responsibility of managing the image of the President and all the good works that he is executing in the country. Rather than face this responsibility squarely, he has shifted his loyalty from the President to others who have no stake in the compact that the President signed with Nigerians on May 29, 2015 and 2019.
“To make matters worse, Mr. Shehu has presented himself to these people as a willing tool and executioner of their antics, from the corridors of power even to the level of interfering with the family affairs of the President. This should not be so. The blatant meddling in the affairs of a First Lady of a country is a continuation of the prodigal actions of those that he serves.
“We all remember that the chief proponent appropriated to himself and his family a part of the Presidential Villa, where he stayed for almost 4 years and when the time came for him to leave, he orchestrated and invaded my family’s privacy through a video circulated by Mamman’s Daughter, Fatima, the public was given the impression that on arrival into the country I was locked out of the villa by Mr. President. Garba Shehu as Villa Spokesperson, knew the truth and had the responsibility to set the records straight, but because his allegiance is somewhere else and his loyalty misplaced, he deliberately refused to clear the air and speak for the President who appointed him in the first place.
