In a Political Arena of Nigeria, Cabals are the loyalists of President Muhammad Buhari, They decide the fate of individual and individuals, who are seeking for help or favour of Mr President. In Oxford dictionary, Cabal means: A usually secret exclusive organization of individuals gathered for a political purpose.
Former Chief of Staff to the President
Abba Kyari was on 22 August 2015, appointed Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari.
He was an influential figure within the Buhari administration. During the administration’s first term, he worked mainly behind the scenes to implement the president’s agenda. In 2019 with Buhari’s re-election for a second term, he ordered his cabinet to channel all requests through Kyari’s office. Further enhancing his influence within government circles, and being labelled as the (de facto) head of government. Kyari appeared to be the most powerful Chief of Staff Nigeria ever had.
In 2017, following a leaked memo, Kyari became embroiled in a public argument with the Head of Civil Service, who was later removed from office and arrested.
17 April 2020 was unforgettable date in the calendar of Nigeria as Former Chief of staff, Abba Kyari rest his soul in the Almighty Allah due to sickness after contacted pandemic disease called “Coronavirus’ at First Cardiology Consultants, hospital Lagos.
The struggle for New Chief of Staff began, different names were surfacing from different quarters, Baba Gana Kingebe, Lawal Musa Daura and other diehard supporters of President Muhammad Buhari.
Tuesday, May 2, President Muhammadu Buhari appointed Professor Agboola Ibrahim Gambari, 75, as his new chief of staff.
Ibrahim Gambari takes over as President Muhammadu Buhari’s right hand man. Ambassador Gambari is not a stranger in the Political circle of Nigeria, a close associate of Muhammad Buhari since 1980s, Gambari served as the Minister for External Affairs between 1984 and 1985 under General Muhammadu Buhari’s military regime.
He was the director general of The Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA). From 1990 to 1999, he holds the record of being the longest serving Nigerian Ambassador to the United Nations, serving under five Heads of State and Presidents.
Gambari’s new post as Chief of Staff to Buhari was known as the most central political role under his predecessor, Abba Kyari. It was Kyari’s friendship with Buhari over 40 years together with the President’s aversion to public appearances that made his chief of staff such a powerful interlocutor….
In order to Cage the new Chief of Staff, The cabals in Aso-Villa are planning secretly to appoint Private Secretary for President Muhammad Buhari,
President Buhari’s Spokesperson, Femi Adesina, Makes Desperate Moves to Mend Relationship With New Chief Of Staff To President, Gambari, 12 Years After Damning Newspaper Article to attack his personality.
According to information around, Adesina, knowing the importance of the office Gambari now occupies in the President Buhari administration, has been writing persuasive articles but using the names of other persons to push them out to the public in a desperate move to ‘soften’ the heart of the new Chief of Staff and make him forgive and forget the incident of the past between them.
Worried by the dust raised by a newspaper article he wrote against Prof Ibrahim Gambari, new Chief of Staff, in 2008, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, is said to have adopted a new way to repair any sort of damage that article might have caused to his relationship with the ex-United Nations diplomat.
Sources also said that Adesina had been using Aso Villa mail distribution list to circulate the articles in order for them to hit maximum reach.
Sometimes in Nigeria, First Lady, Hajia Aisha Buhari, had an interview with the BBC, Hausa Service, where she alluded to the presence of a group who have held her husband captive.”Cabal”, Although she did not give any names, her description of the modus operandi of the group perfectly tallies with what Junaid Mohammed had told the world about what’s CABAL, Who are they and their functions.
Members of the cabal under Late Abba Kyari had unfettered access to the President and they were usually abreast of his thinking and policy directions. They were his ardent supporters who did the odd jobs to safeguard the regime. They had their hands in every pie and have been fingered in most controversies, scams and scandals that have bedevilled the current administration.
These are some of the profiles Nigerians believed to be member of the Cabal in Aso Rock:
(1) MAMMAN DAURA
Alhaji Mamman Daura, is an uncle to President Muhammadu Buhari. Although Daura is two and half years older than the President, the nephew-uncle relationship has been extremely close and dates back to their childhood years. For the two men, it has been bond of blood and mutual respect.
It is said that Buhari had always listened to and confided in Mamman Daura because of the mutual trust both men had cultivated over the years.
(2) LAWAL MUSA DAURA
Lawal Daura was born in Daura, Katsina State, on August, 5, 1953. He attended Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria from 1977–1980 and started his carrier in the State Security Service (SSS) in 1982 where he rose to the rank of Director. He was the Deputy Director, Presidential Communication, Command and Control Centre, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, between 2003 and 2007.
He also served as State Director of the SSS at various times in Kano, Sokoto, Edo, Lagos, Osun and Imo states. He attended various professional courses both home and abroad including the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, near Jos.
(3) HAMMED ALI
Colonel Hammed Ibrahim Ali (rtd) was born on January 15, 1955. He was Military Administrator of Kaduna State, Nigeria from August 1996 – August 1998 during the military regime of General Sani Abacha. He is married and blessed with 4 children.
Ali holds a Masters degree in Criminology.
After retirement from the Nigerian Army, he became Secretary of the Arewa Consultative Forum, a northern lobby group, He was appointed as the Comptroller-General of Customs on August 27, 2015.
(4) ABDULRAHMAN DAMBAZZAU
Abdulrahman Bello Dambazau was born on March 14, 1954. He is an indigene of Zaria in Kaduna State. Dambazau had his secondary education at Barewa College, Zaria, where he finished from in 1974. He then proceeded to the Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna, where he was member of the 17 Regular Combatant Course. In June 1977, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant into the Infantry Corps of the Nigerian Army.
(5) ABUBAKAR MALAMI
Abubakar Malami, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, was born on April 17, 1967, in Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi State. He is an indigene of Kebbi State and had his early education at Nassarawa Primary School, Birnin Kebbi from 1973 to 1979 and later, College of Arts and Arabic Studies. He proceeded to the Usman Dan Fodio University, Sokoto where he studied Law between 1987 to 1991.
(6) BABACHIR DAVID LAWAL
Babachir David Lawal is a native of Hong in Hong Local Government Area of Adamawa State. He had his university education at the Ahmadu Belllo University, Zaria, where he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering in 1979.
Lawal had a brief stint with the Delta Steel Company, Aladja before moving on to Nigerian External Telecommunications Limited and Data Sciences Limited. And others .
New Chief of Staff, Gambari will face a tough moment from the existing Cabals after the death of previous Chief of staff, Abba Kyari, they are planning to build a block round Gambari not to be Powerful, and not to give them problem of having direct access to Mr President.
The Chief of staff is also saddled with the responsibility of keeping the vice president and his eagled eyes boss out of the way of the northern cabals as it is of utmost importance to the Cabals despite whatever power mongering in the north the hawks in the south must be kept at Bay and the chief of staff is saddled with that responsibility.
Appointing Private Secretary for President Muhammad Buhari will reduce the power of New Chief of Staff and it won’t allow him to operate freely like Abba Kyari, his success will depend on how he deals with forces around him, Gambari choice is the personal decision of President Muhammad Buhari, Femi Adesina and others will do everything possible to handicap new Chief of Staff, he is the biggest problem for Cabals at Aso-Villa now.
Nigerian should be careful not to expect too much from him, The President has a team of economic advisers; so his job is only to advise and supervise, all efforts to operate like Abba Kyari will be resisted by the Cabals.
