Aso Rock is the seat of power in Nigeria, and just like every other seat of government in the world, there are always power plays and schemings around there.
Given the recent development in Aso Rock, it’s now undeniable that there’s a serious unhealthy power play in Nigeria’s seat of government between the First Lady Aisha Buhari and a group of very strong individuals who wield so much power and influence,and who are hitherto known as the “CABAL” in the Nigerian political circle.
Ordinarily, the FirstLady shouldn’t be the one at the epicenter of the power play, but the case of Nigeria is so unique that she’s at the center of the whole thing.
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For one to have a little grasp of what’s happening at the Aso villa, there are many situations involving the FirstLady, where she publicly made statements showing the red flags in the Villa, and that her husband is not in charge.
In one of the women summits before the 2019 general elections, Aisha Buhari categorically said that Buhari’s government had been hijacked by two men. She further said she had to speak up as the mother of the country, and had to digress from what they wrote for her to say (prepared speech), for the future of Nigeria. She asked where Nigeria men are to have allowed 2 out of over 15 million people that voted Buhari to take over his government.
There was also a viral video, where the first lady was locked up in Aso Rock and wasn’t allowed to appear in the public. The incident happened after she made a surprise return from her trip abroad on the 10th of October 2019, amidst a rumour that Buhari was to take a new wife the next day. In the video, the First Lady was seen fuming, asking what she did to a certain people, and why they should lock her room. She questioned why they had to lock her doors when they had over 200 soldiers, 200 policemen and other security agents guarding the Aso Rock villa. She thundered:
“What for? What for? Enough is enough! Enough is enough!”
The last incident in which her security details had a fisticuff with Buhari’s special assistant and one of his most cherished aides, “Tunde” in which gunshots were fired in the Aso Villa has left much to be desired.
It’s unheard of anywhere in the seat of government in the world to fire a gunshot, unless it’s a coup to topple the government. It’s actually seen as a sign of war as seat of government is usually the most fortified place in every nation. If the acrimony and power play in Aso Rock can get to a point where gunshots were fired, it has gotten out of hand. Even the Turai Yaradua episode didn’t get this low.
From the foregoing, it’s evident that Buhari is not in charge, and that’s the reason why the FirstLady has stepped up to take power into her own hands by fighting off those she perceived to have snatched the power from Buhari and had taken absolute control of the presidency.
By
Odumodu Gbulagu
AFRICA DAILY NEWS, NEW YORK
