He was conferred with the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger.

Also, former Governor of Osun, Bisi Akande; Olusegun Osoba; Mamman Daura and Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, among others received Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic.

On the list are also Ministers who served under him.

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In a statement Garba Shehu, his spokesman, issued on his behalf, Buhari said Daura is worthy of being celebrated.

The president said at 81, Daura is a veteran of Nigeria’s political history and active participant in its development”.

He said Daura has lived a worthy life.

“Daura’s experience is not unusual because many great men are not appreciated, which stems from the cynical obsession of many of his critics,” the president said.

“To be just and fair-minded in the assessment of public figures like Mamman Daura whose contributions to the development of the country overshadow perceived flaws.

“A veteran of Nigeria’s political history and active participant in its development ,a dedicated public servant, consummate administrator, and one of our worthiest gentlemen who is widely misunderstood by so many.”

Buhari commended Daura for his vast experience and knowledge in public administration, saying “it’s impossible to sit down with Daura without gaining from his vast experience, knowledge and wisdom.”

“As you celebrate the ripe age of 81, may Allah bless you with better health and longer life in the service of Nigeria and mankind. You are a fountain of inspiration and an inexhaustible reservoir of knowledge. We are proud of your invaluable support,” he said.

“I wish you more abundant blessings from God. Happy birthday.”

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In an interview with BBC Hausa, Daura, the president’s older nephew, had said it is better for competence to prevail over zoning in government positions.

Daura’s comment had attracted criticisms from socio-ethnic groups and some stakeholders in the country.

Edwin Clark, elder statesman, had asked Daura why he did not speak against zoning before his nephew was elected president.

In a statement on Saturday, Garba Shehu, presidential spokesman, said Daura is entitled to express his personal view on issues.

“We have received numerous requests for comments on the interview granted by Malam Mamman Daura, President Muhammadu Buhari’s nephew to the BBC Hausa Service,” Shehu said.

“It is important that we state from the onset that as mentioned by the interviewee, the views expressed were personal to him and did not, in any way, reflect that of either the President or his administration.

“At age 80, and having served as editor and managing director of one of this country’s most influential newspapers, the New Nigerian, certainly, Malam Mamman qualifies as an elder statesman with a national duty to hold perspectives and disseminate them as guaranteed under our constitution and laws of the land. He does not need the permission or clearance of anyone to exercise this right.

“In an attempt to circulate the content of the interview to a wider audience, the English translation clearly did no justice to the interview, which was granted in Hausa, and as a result, the context was mixed up and new meanings were introduced and/or not properly articulated.

“These issues remain at the heart of our evolving and young democracy, and as a veteran journalist, scholar and statesman, Malam Mamman has seen enough to add his voice to those of many other participants.”

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Daura, in an interview, had said competence, rather than zoning, should be prioritised for government positions.

However, while featuring as a guest on Democracy Today, a programme on AIT which aired on Wednesday, Clark countered Daura’s stance on zoning.

According to the elder statesman, Daura shouldn’t have a say in such matters as zoning, as he didn’t have much experience in politics.

“I’m not surprised at the principle statement by Mamman Daura. He has no political background; he hasn’t held any office in this country; he doesn’t belong to any political party, so he has not got any political experience,” Clark said.

“The main fact that he is permanently a resident in Aso Rock as adviser to his uncle is not enough for him to make irresponsible statement that could jeopardise the unity of this country.

“To jettison zoning is looking for chaotic situation in this country and there will be no one Nigeria, united Nigeria because no one will be a slave to the others.”

Clark maintained that any move to reject zoning would not reflect positively on ensuring unity in the country.

“I met him (Daura) for the first time in my life, now he has a privilege of residing permanently in Aso Rock, being the leader of the cabal, being the man who is advising. What is he advising?” he asked.

“No one prevents him from being a nephew to his uncle, Muhammadu Buhari, from advising him on family matters. He has no right to stay permanently without any official appointment in Aso Rock and thereby having the privilege of enjoying the government activities.

“Now he doesn’t want rotation to continue. Let me say this: nobody is a fool; who’s fooling who in this country?

“Every region in this country has people with reputation, capable, intelligent and are today wasting away because some people what to be the overlord of this country.

“So, if we want to have a united Nigeria and practise true democracy, there must be a rotation of the presidency between the north and south.

“Who are they now to say that they are rejecting rotation in the favour of competence? Are they more competent than any other Nigerian in one place?

“The solution is that when Buhari leaves, let the rotation go to the south as recommended by the national conference. We must have a united Nigeria based on equality, otherwise there will be no Nigeria.”

Several groups including Ohanaeze Ndigbo, apex Igbo socio-cultural group, have also rejected Daura’s call to jettison zoning.

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The Vanguard quoted Daura to have made the statement in an interview with BBC Hausa Service.

Daura is rumoured to be the head of the so-called cabal that allegedly influences most decisions of the Buhari administration.

Breaking the silence on his relationship with Buhari, Daura says he does not impose his decision on the president.

According to him, “You don’t do that to the government”.

He said he (Daura) visits him (Buhari) and offers him advice at the request of the president.

“My father was their mother’s firstborn. Buhari is the last born,” Daura was quoted to have said.

“Yes, I do visit him to greet him. I do give him advice, but if he asked…I advise him. But I don’t go there on my own and insist I must do this or that. No. You don’t do that to the government.”

Aisha Buhari, the president’s wife, has been critical of Daura.

In October 2019, a video of the first lady and Fatima, one of Daura’s daughter, in a heated argument surfaced online.

The first lady claimed she was denied access to an apartment in the presidential villa by Daura’s family.

Fatima, however, said Aisha attacked her inside the villa.

Speaking on zoning of government positions, Daura said it is better for competence to prevail.

“This turn by turn, it was done once, it was done twice, it was done trice… It is better for this country to be one…it should be for the most competent and not for someone who comes from somewhere,” he said.

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In a statement in Abuja on Wednesday, Kola Ologbondiyan, national publicity secretary of the PDP, said the president has handed over the control of the government to a cabal.

The opposition party was reacting to a statement by Aisha Buhari, wife of the president, accusing Garba Shehu, presidential spokesman, of taking instructions from Mamman Daura, the president’s nephew, and undermining her office.

The PDP asked the president to put his house in order to save the country from further embarrassment.

“It is indeed appalling that under President Buhari, our once productive and highly organized Presidency has been bastardized and reduced to Kunle Bamtefa’s soap opera, Fuji House of Commotion,” Ologbondiyan said.

“Instead of governance, the Buhari Presidency has continued to serve Nigerians and the international community with tragicomedies that make mockery of leadership.

“Nigerians can now further see why nothing works under the Buhari presidency; why the administration has remained shambolic and plagued with policy somersault and executive recklessness; why our economy has remained comatose and why our nation has been dangerously drifting to the brinks under President Buhari’s watch.”

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In a statement, she accused the presidential spokesman of interfering in the affairs of the president’s family. “In saner climes, Garba Shehu would have resigned immediately after going beyond his boundaries and powers” she said in the statement.

Aisha said Shehu has abandoned his responsibility of managing the image of the president and 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”.

She accused Shehu of taking instruction from President Buhari’s cousin, Mamman Daura, in the early days of the Administration, to declare that there will not be the Office of the First Lady, a development she said embarrassed her husband.

She accused him of releasing the video in which she had an altercation with the Daura family to the press, adding that his loyalty is not to anyone or group.

See Aisha Buhari’s letter: Garba Shehu Has Gone Beyond His Boundaries
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.

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 it’s 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 BEHAVIOUR 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.

Aisha Muhammadu Buhari
First Lady, Federal Republic of Nigeria
11th December, 2019

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Commenting on a video where the first lady was seen complaining about being denied access to her apartment, Fatima said she least expected Buhari’s wife to act in a violent manner.

In the video which trended on Friday while the rumour mill was agog that the president was getting married to Sadiya Umaru Farouq, minister of humanitarian affairs, disaster management and social development, the president’s wife was seen speaking in anger.

In a BBC Hausa interview, Fatima said she recorded the video as a proof that Buhari’s wife confronted her violently. The incident happened in 2017.

“My name is Fatima. I am a daughter to Malam Mamman Daura… if one reasons well, he or she will understand that it is not possible to say that the wife of the president is denied access to her apartment but let me give a context,” she said.

“The apartment in question is called the Glass House. You know that there are several houses and apartments in the villa. When the president got into office, he gave the Glass House to our father, Mamman Daura.

“You all know that they are friends and are related, more so, they grew up together like twins. When he became president, he gave the Glasshouse to our dad and said he should stay there. Our dad stayed there for three years now until when the president’s son, Yusuf, had an accident and went to Germany for treatment.

“When he returned, the president told our dad to move out of that apartment to an even bigger one in the villa, that Yusuf is going to stay and be treated in the Glass House. The Glass House is closer to the main presidential apartment and that will make easier access to him by his mother. It is not in her apartment which is in the main apartment.”

Fatima narrated what led to the incident that was captured in the video, saying she recorded it to use as evidence against the first lady.

“(On that day) My mom and dad were not around. So, my dad instructed me and my elder sister, both of us are working and we go to work every morning, that we should come on a Saturday and move our belongings to the new apartment the president instructed.

“We planned to park out then and have even concluded moving all the things. All of a sudden, in the afternoon as we were busy on that errand of packing our belongings when we heard noise from outside. I was in an inner room in the house while my sister was in an outer one close to the main gate of the apartment. So my sister went out before I could come out.

“On getting there, it was the wife of the president. When she came, the door was locked and she picked a metal chair and broke the door. I have sent the picture to you. My sister that went out was almost hit by the chair. She threw the chair which broke through the door and almost hit my sister.

“I was so shocked and afraid of getting there because she was shouting and reigning abuses words and saying we should move out of that apartment. That she has never seen this kind of thing before. I then went back and picked my phone because if one is to say that she acted that way, no one would believe it without a proof. She has already been saying a lot of things depicting that she is being suppressed.

“So I recorded it to show our parents and the security, so that they will know the truth should anything happen. Because the way she was raging and shouting, I was thinking that she would pick something and hit us with it or something like that. That was why we recorded it. Had it been we wanted to release the video, we would have done it earlier. But you know if a video clip enters one or two hands, you can’t control where it will get to.

“There are even other clips that have not been released, I will send them to you to see how she was insulting the security and how she drove them away saying who are they protecting and calling them bloody idiots. Its all on the video clip. That was what happened.”

Suleiman Haruna, spokesman of the first lady, neither responded to calls nor replied a text message sent as of the time this report was filed.

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Daura, who is Buhari’s older nephew, is often described as the head of the so-called cabal that takes most decisions under the current administration.

The cabal is said to have asked the president to marry Sadiya Umar Farouq, the minister of humanitarian affairs, to spite Aisha, his wife of 30 years, over constant criticism of the clique.

The rumour was so strong last week with the purveyors picking Friday, October 4, for the wedding ceremony that never was.

In an interview with BBC Hausa Service, Fatima said her father and Buhari are monogamists.

“Wallahi, it is a lie. It is all part of what I am saying about the false allegations against our father. He is not even aware of the rumours about the marriage issue because he doesn’t use the social media. They are both monogamous. Both my dad and the president practice monogamy. They are all lies aimed at blackmailing him. They keep falsely accusing him. It does not tally with reason,” she said.

Buhari’s wife has taken pot shots at the cabal in the past, saying those who did not campaign for her husband during the 2015 elections were the ones calling the shots in his government.

Fatima specifically denied the insinuation that her father was teleguiding the president, describing him as a shy person who only minds his business.

Asked if her father was indeed controlling the president, she replied: “I think the question should be directed to her (Aisha). If one would be objective, one would understand that they (Buhari and Daura) grew up together, shared the same friends and did a lot of things together, so if any one is appointed that is close to our dad, that person is also close to the president. They have been together and they do things together. Everyone has his own confidant that he listens to. I think that is the reason for the allegations. They are very close friends. They are also related by blood so there is no way you can separate them.”

She swore that her father is not the one controlling the president. “Wallahi, it is not like that. You guys are journalists, you can investigate and see how our father is. He is a shy fellow, doesn’t talk a lot and hardly cares about other people’s businesses. Even we as his children, he doesn’t impose things on us,” she told the BBC.

“You know the president can seek his advice but he is not the kind of fellow that will impose or insist on something. He can simply advise and stay away at home minding his business. He hardly speaks, he is 80 years old. When you talk to him about the allegations, he says you should not bother yourselves, that God is clearing his sins by such false accusations. If you are reasonable, you will see that the powers being allotted to our father by his accusers are wrong. It is only God that has such powers. It doesn’t make sense.”

She said she feels sad that her father is being blamed for the goings-on in government.

“Definitely, it is sad to hear your father being wrongly accused. But for the fact that our father is solely dependent on God and we are also like that, it doesn’t bother us much. We see it as the price we have to pay for being loyal to the president, for being there for him and for supporting him. One day, the truth will come out,” she said.

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The enhanced security is also for the Chief of Staff, Mallam Abba Kyari and some other members of the President’s Kitchen Cabinet, following protests over the cabinet, which is yet to be formed.

Security agencies, who are screening nominees from the states, are said to be trailing the sponsors of the attacks on Daura and Kyari.

It was also learnt that the President is finalising the consideration of ministerial nominees with three shortlisted per state for broader perspective.

Besides, preliminary background checks on some of the nominees are still on going, but it was unclear last night whether or not the President will have a 36-man cabinet or a 42-man team.

The presidency is said to have been disturbed about personal attacks on Daura and Kyari.

Besides street protests against Kyari in Abuja, there was also the invasion of Daura’s home in Kaduna on Tuesday.

The protesters, who officials believe were sponsored, had assumed that the two leaders and other members of Buhari’s kitchen cabinet could stop their candidates from being ministers.

It was gathered that the presidency was bitter that the jostle for ministerial tickets has become “personal assault.”

A President source said: “The Presidency has directed that security be strengthened for Daura, Kyari and other close associates of the President, who are being targeted.

“The challenge most lobbyists are having is that the President is keeping the list of his incoming cabinet to himself. Not even APC leaders or governors have access to the list.

“Some may have dropped names but the President is always keeping quiet. It is difficult to read his mindset. So, attacking Daura and Kyari was unfortunate. They do not have any role to play in compiling the list of those who will be members of the Federal Executive Council.”

“Security agencies are investigating those behind the unwarranted personal attacks on Daura and Kyari and others being assumed to be in charge of the cabinet list, who are said to be sponsored. “I believe these agencies will unmask them.”

Another source said that the final consideration of likely ministerial nominees is being done by the President.

Most states have as many as three nominees from whom the President will pick one. “The list in most states comprises three nominees, but the President has adopted broader perspective in considering the nominees, including some former ministers.

“Preliminary background checks on some of the nominees are ongoing. But before the President sends the list to the National Assembly in July, the checks would have been concluded and the best chosen for cabinet appointments.”

It was unclear if the President will retain the 36-man structure or allow six more ministers for each of the six geopolitical zones to make 42.

A Presidency source said: “The constitution allows either 36 or 42 ministers. It is the prerogative of the President to determine what is best for the nation.”

Section 147(1-3) directs the President to appoint at least 36 ministers unless the constitution is amended.

The section reads: “There shall be such offices of Ministers of the Government of the Federation as may be established by the President.

“Any appointment to the office of Minister of the Government of the Federation shall, if the nomination of any person to such office is confirmed by the Senate, be made by the President.

“Any appointment under Subsection (2) of this section by the President shall be in conformity with the provisions of Section 14(3) of this Constitution:

“Provided that in giving effect to the provisions aforesaid the President shall appoint at least one minister from each state, who shall be an indigene of such state.”

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