A powerful cabal operating from within Aso Rock during the final days of former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration allegedly devised a covert plot, using fake presidential directives, security pressure and raw power play, to derail the presidential ambition of Bola Ahmed Tinubu ahead of the 2023 All Progressives Congress presidential primary.
This explosive revelation is contained in From Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari, a new biography authored by Dr Charles Omole and recently unveiled at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja.
According to the book, influential aides close to President Buhari sought to manipulate the APC primary process by falsely invoking the President’s authority. Their goal, Omole wrote, was to force the emergence of then Senate President Ahmad Lawan as the party’s consensus presidential candidate, against the wishes of party members and aspirants, including Tinubu.
The plot allegedly involved approaching the nation’s top security chiefs, the Inspector General of Police, the Director General of the Department of State Services and the Director General of the National Intelligence Agency, with what was presented as a presidential order to deploy security machinery in support of Lawan’s candidacy.
Former Inspector General of Police, Alkali Baba, quoted extensively in the book, revealed that the request immediately aroused suspicion. Unconvinced by the authenticity of the directive, he said he declined to act on it and, together with the DSS and NIA chiefs, demanded an urgent audience with President Buhari to confirm the claim.
At the meeting, Buhari reportedly dismissed the alleged order outright, making it clear that he neither authorised any security deployment nor endorsed any aspirant for the APC ticket. The former President, according to the account, laughed off suggestions that he was backing Lawan and reaffirmed his belief that leadership should emerge through free choice, not coercion or security interference.
Those accused of orchestrating the scheme were said to be waiting outside the meeting venue, expecting their plan to succeed. Instead, they were confronted with a firm message from the Inspector General of Police that the President had no preferred candidate and that there would be no manipulation of the primary process from the Presidential Villa.
Omole noted that the episode exposed how some aides abused their proximity to power, exploiting Buhari’s trust to project personal agendas and misrepresent his position without his knowledge or consent.
Beyond the primary election intrigue, the book also offers rare insights into other tense moments within the Buhari administration. It recounts the behind the scenes role played by former First Lady Aisha Buhari in the eventual removal of former DSS Director General Lawal Daura, a decision taken while Vice President Yemi Osinbajo served as Acting President.
Upon his return, Buhari reportedly refused to overturn Osinbajo’s action, insisting that reversing it would weaken institutional discipline and undermine the authority he had lawfully delegated.
The biography further revealed a dramatic family related incident within the Presidential Villa, where a dispute escalated into gunfire after a police officer attached to the First Lady discharged his weapon. The officer was arrested, while Buhari reportedly ordered disciplinary measures against relatives who contributed to the breakdown of order, underscoring, the author wrote, his belief that no one was above the law, including family.
The book launch drew an array of high profile dignitaries, including President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Gambian President Adama Barrow, First Lady Oluremi Tinubu, Nana Shettima, governors, traditional rulers, former First Lady Aisha Buhari, members of the Buhari family and several former aides, marking a moment of reflection on power, loyalty and the hidden battles that shaped Nigeria’s recent political history.
