Abba Kyari’s Many Battles In Aso Rock

By Chuks Ekpeneru

The late Mallam Abba Kyari was highly educated and prepared for his job. He, however, brushed egos and heads in the course of his service to the president.

For the National Security Adviser, Major-General Babagana Monguno (rtd.), the death of the Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari should be a time of sober reflection.

Monguno was among several top government officials who received Kyari’s body at the Defence Guest House, Maitama Friday morning.

Not long ago, the NSA was involved in an altercation with Kyari over who should coordinate the military service and intelligence chiefs.

Monguno in a leaked memo, had complained that Kyari hijacked his duties.

“Chief of staff to the president is not a presiding head of security, neither is he sworn to an oath of defending the country,” Monguno stated.

Monguno is not the only prominent Nigerian that crossed the path of Kyari and came out with a bitter story.

Aisha Buhari

Until his death, he was not known to be a fan of the first lady, Mrs. Aisha Buhari.

During her husband’s first term, Hajia Aisha raised the alarm over a cabal in the Presidency, blasting Kyari of leading the cabal to hijack the Presidency of the country.

She saw Kyari as the head of a powerful cabal that ran Nigeria behind the scenes, alongside the president’s uncle Mamman Daura.

This led to the now-famous comment by the President that she belongs to the kitchen and the other room, a statement that went viral in the social media.

It was even rumoured at a time that Aisha relocated out of the country because of the quarrels with the cabal, which she believes Kyari was working with.

However, at his death, the first lady joined other Nigerians to mourn Abba Kyari, praying to God to forgive all “shortcomings”.

In a Twitter post, she consoled with Mr. Kyari’s family and prayed for a quick end to the pandemic.

“I condole with Mrs. Kulu Abba Kyari and the entire family of Late Malam Abba Kyari over the death of their husband and father.

“I pray that Allah (SWT) will forgive his shortcomings, grant him Al-Jannatul Firdausi and give the family the fortitude and patience to bear the loss, Ameen.

“While wishing all those infected a speedy recovery and I pray for an end to Covid-19 Pandemic,” she said.

Oyo-Ita

Whether true or not, some will also speculate that the late Kyari had a hand in the removal and eventual arraignment in court of former Head of Service of the Federation, Winifred Oyo-Ita.

Though the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has disproved the insinuations that Kyari, ordered the probe of Oyo-Ita, not many will believe that her fate is a result of the public disagreement with Kyari during the Abdulrasheed Maina saga.

Nasir El-Rufai

It is not known if Kyari had cordial relations with the governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el-Rufai, who is also down with Covid-19 before his death.

In a scathing memo in 2016, El- Rufai accused him and a sacked Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, of being clueless.

According to him in a letter to Buhari, “You appear to have neither a political adviser nor a minder of your politics. The two officials whose titles may enable them function as such generally alienate those that contributed to our success. The SGF is not only inexperienced in public service but is lacking in humility, insensitive and rude to virtually most of the party leaders, ministers and governors.

“The Chief of Staff is totally clueless about the APC and its internal politics at best as he was neither part of its formation nor a participant in the primaries, campaigns and elections. In summary, neither of them has the personality, experience and the reach to manage your politics, nationally or even regionally,” the governor wrote then.

Walter Onnoghen

Some also traced the removal of former Chief Justice of the Federation, Walter Onnoghen to the underground manipulations by Kyari. They alleged the removal of Onnoghen was to pave way for a favourable decision by the judiciary in the presidential election appeal, saying that Kyari worked with some judiciary insiders to undo the Cross Rivers State born Onnoghen.

Ministers

Not many believe that some of the cabinet ministers were unhappy that they had to go through Kyari to reach the President as he decided if you had a chance to speak with the president or not.

He was often rumoured to put Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in the shade or shadows too.

Not many Nigerians would forget when Buhari was ill during his first term in London and Kyari took a bill to him to sign even when Osinbajo was around.

Some, however, say Kyari had to do what he did to defend his principal, the President.

He was indeed well educated and grounded for the job. He had solid experience as a former banker, journalist, lawyer among others.

In a Twitter post, a former Special Assistant to President Goodluck Jonathan during his time as the President of Nigeria, Reno Omokiri said that Kyari was selected by President Buhari himself and he did a good job serving him.

Speaking on the late CoS, Femi Fani-Kayode says he has lost a friend of 40 years. He said Kyari was a good man.

“I have lost a friend of 40 years. We were at Cambridge together. We worked in my father’s law firm together. We remained close throughout right up until the end even though we disagreed politically. Abba was a good man: a man of honor & a loyal friend. May his soul rest in peace,” the former aviation minister tweeted Saturday morning.

As 2023 general election approaches, some who saw him as obstacle in the calculations may be celebrating, while those who hinged their aspirations on him may be gnashing their teeth.

For sure, alive, Kyari would have played a major role on who succeeds the incumbent President. Now he would neither be a factor in 2023 nor a factor in the present.

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