By Ehichioya Ezomon
Keen polity watchers knew that the First Lady, Mrs. Aisha Buhari, had some ace up her sleeves when she claimed recently that aides to President Muhammadu Buhari had abandoned their duty to project him and his government’s achievements.
Rather, she said the presidency had dabbled in non-governmental affairs, for instance, “coming out to say they were shocked” when the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said it would punish former President Goodluck Jonathan for alleged anti-party activities during the November 16, 2019, poll in Bayelsa State.
To the First Lady: “I see no reason why the presidency should come out and say that they were shocked to hear that. Is it their business? Are we PDP members? Is former President Jonathan a member of our party? What does (has) that got to do with the presidency?”
Mrs. Buhari expressed her exasperation in a phone-in interview on Television Continental, as published by New Telegraph. Yet, it wasn’t long before she picked her actual target: Presidential spokesman, Mallam Garba Shehu.
In a statement, she levelled sundry allegations against Shehu, saying he had lost the confidence of the “First Family” he’s supposed to protect from the “cabals” in Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.
Thus, “in saner climes, Garba Shehu would have resigned immediately after going beyond his boundaries and powers,” Mrs. Buhari said, adding that, “his action has shown a complete breakdown of trust between the First Family and him.”
Does the veteran journalist need explaining to that his days at the Presidential Villa are not just numbered, but over, as he’s confronted with a scenario of, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned?” Surely, Mrs. Buhari’s anger matches that of a woman, “who has been rejected in love.”
She said Shehu sponsored media campaigns to “defame” her and her children, while he had “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,” she said.
We may never get to the bottom of this matter, as Shehu might be unable to pick a fight with her. But these are weighty allegations by a woman, who doesn’t shy away from controversial remarks.
Since the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration of President Buhari, the First Lady has tackled hot issues, such as:
* “Cabals” in the Villa dictating the pace of government; non-members of the APC, and unknown to her as “wife of 27 years,” appointed into government.
* Imminent sack of these “monkey dey work, baboon dey chop” people; the Aso Rock Medical Centre not equipped to standards, despite billions of allocations; the APC Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, “favoured” some aspirants in the 2019 polls.
* Nationwide insecurity and suffering due to long neglect of the citizens; and non-consequences for offenders, such that spread false rumours about Buhari’s death, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo’s resignation, and Buhari’s marriage to another wife.
Her conclusion: If “there’re no consequences for any offence,” and “it is like everybody is free to talk; freedom of movement, freedom of speech, expressing your opinion on things,” why should she stop talking even if her comments are “bombshells?”
Truth is, were the opposition PDP alive to its billing, some of Mrs. Buhari’s outbursts, which seemingly tarred the credibility of Buhari and his government, were ready ammo the party could have deployed to advantage in the 2019 elections.
While the likes of Shehu and Oshiomhole tried to remove the chestnuts from the fire, her stinging appraisals stoked resentment against the Buhari government, thus becoming the “darling” of the opposition that hailed her “courage to tell truth to power.”
Mrs. Buhari lately taxed a video portraying her as reacting violently to Buhari’s alleged plan to marry the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq.
She described the viral video as a past incident recorded by Fatima Daura, daughter of Mamman Daura, a nephew and close ally of President Buhari, whose family was living at the Villa.
It’s when Mrs. Buhari confronted the Dauras to leave an apartment meant for members of the President’s family, which she wanted her powerbike-crash injured son, Yusuf, to use for his recuperation.
Fatima Daura, who admitted authorship of the video, circulated it later, “giving the impression that on arrival into the country, I was locked out of the Villa by Mr. President,” the First Lady said.
But she’s surprised that Shehu, who “knew the truth and had the responsibility to set the records straight… deliberately refused to clear the air and speak for the President, who appointed him in the first place.”
Perhaps, the deepest cut to her is the issue of “First Lady” that was probably misconstrued when Buhari, at a press conference in Germany in October 2016, said “my wife belongs to my kitchen and my living room and the other room,” in response to her questioning of his leadership in a BBC interview.
Translation: Aisha, as “Wife of the President,” should be heard and not seen as the “First Lady of Nigeria.” Hence, in four years, she endured as “Mrs. Aisha Buhari, Wife of the President,” while the wives of State Governors paraded as “First Ladies.”
How awkward, and humiliating it must be for Mrs. Buhari to be called “Wife of the President of Nigeria” even when she received wives of foreign Presidents christened as “First Ladies”!
But after Buhari’s re-election, she hosted governors’ wives, and said she was assuming the title of “First Lady of Nigeria,” and each of her guests labelled as “Wife of Governor of ‘XYZ’ State.”
In her latest blowup, Mrs. Buhari gave a background to how she’s denied the appellation of “First Lady” by a reported conspiracy between Mallam Daura and Mallam Shehu.
Her words: “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.
“In saner climes, Garba Shehu would have resigned immediately after going beyond his boundaries and powers.” So, with her gloves off, remaining at the Presidential Villa will liken Mallam Shehu to a man, who dares his chi to a wrestling. He should take heed and walk away before he’s shown the door.
Mr. Ezomon, Journalist and Media Consultant, writes from Lagos, Nigeria.