Mamman Daura Issued Presidential Directive Without My Husband’s Knowledge – Aisha Buhari

Says Garba Shehu should have resigned for
misconduct

Nigerian First Lady Aisha Buhari has alleged that Mamman Daura,
a nephew of President Muhammadu Buhari, had used a presidential
media aide to try and destabilise the First Family.

Mrs Buhari alleges that the aide, Garba Shehu, a Presidential
Villa spokesman, was used by Daura to release a video that went
viral in October when she returned from a two-month foreign trip,
where she was seen asking questions and making comments about being
locked out of a particular room at the Presidential Villa, and
demanding that some unidentified persons pack their belongings out
of the premises.

The President’s wife in a statement she personally signed and
made available to the media Wednesday morning, also alleges that
the meddlesomeness of Shehu almost led to the sack of two NTA staff
attached to her office, adding that the antics have led to a
“complete breakdown of trust between the First Family and him.”

The statement titled ‘Garba Shehu Has Gone Beyond His
Boundaries‘, sent through the First Lady’s media aide, Suleiman
Haruna’s email, reads:

“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 abandon their responsibility and start
clutching at straws.

“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. Consequently, his
action has shown a complete breakdown of trust between the First
Family and him.

“Mr Shehu was privy and part of the plan and its execution and
he was shocked when he realized that I had publicized my return to
Nigeria on October 12, 2019 and cleared the air on the many rumors
that took over social media, a job he was supposed to do but kept
mute to cause more confusion and instability for his Principal and
his family.

“Garba then vented his anger on the National Television
Authority (NTA) Management, insisting that the media crew to my
office must be sacked. He succeeded in getting them suspended for
doing their job. I had to intervene to save the innocent staff from
losing their means of livelihood by involving the Department of
State Services (DSS) in order to ascertain roles played by key
actors in the saga.

“It is at this late hour that I recall, sadly, that it was the
same Garba Shehu who claimed that the government will not allow
office of the First Lady to run. He was later to confirm to one of
my aides that he was instructed to say so by Mamman Daura and not
the President. This antic attracted the anger of Nigerian women. He
didn’t realize the fact that First Lady’s office is a tradition
which has become an institution.

“Today, even without a budget, I am able run my humanitarian
programmes.

“In saner climes, Garba Shehu would have resigned immediately
after going beyond his boundaries and powers.

“GARBA SHEHU NEEDS TO UNDERSTAND THAT THIS KIND OF
BEHAVIOR WILL NO LONGER BE TOLERATED.

“The latest of his antics was to wage a war on the first family
through an orchestrated media campaign of calumny by sponsoring
pseudo accounts to write and defame my children and myself.

“Based on Garba Shehu’s misguided sense of loyalty and inability
to stay true and loyal to one person or group, it has become
apparent that all trust has broken down between him and my family
due to the many embarrassments he has caused the Presidency and the
first family. We all have families to consider in our actions and
therefore it is in the best interest of all concerned for Garba
Shehu to take the advice of the authority given to him sometimes in
the first week of November, 2019.”

Subscribe ToNairalaw News!