Revealed: How Aisha Buhari Forced Osinbajo’s Hand In Sacking DSS Boss

A new biography of the late former President Muhammadu Buhari, authored by Charles Omole, has shed light on the role played by former First Lady Aisha Buhari in the removal of Lawal Daura as Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS).....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

The book, unveiled on Monday at the State House Conference Hall during an event attended by President Bola Tinubu, details how Aisha Buhari influenced the decision that led then Acting President Yemi Osinbajo to dismiss Daura.

According to the publication, the incident occurred against the backdrop of an alleged plot by powerful figures within Aso Rock who circulated forged presidential directives to security chiefs, purportedly aimed at manipulating the 2023 APC presidential primaries in favour of then Senate President, Ahmad Lawan.

The account states that on the eve of the party’s primaries, aides close to Buhari approached the Inspector-General of Police, the DSS Director-General and the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency with what they claimed were presidential instructions to deploy security forces to ensure Lawan emerged as the party’s consensus candidate.

The biography portrays Aisha Buhari as playing a decisive role in Daura’s dismissal, describing the episode as one of the earliest moments that tested Buhari’s commitment to institutional boundaries.

“We can also reveal that the First Lady, Aisha Buhari, was a major driver of the removal of the SSS boss,” the book notes, adding that when Osinbajo exercised presidential authority to sack Daura, Buhari resisted pressure to overturn the decision, seeing any intervention as an affront to his deputy and to due process.

Former Inspector-General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba, also provided an account of the alleged fake order saga. He recalled a discreet meeting ahead of the 2023 elections involving the National Security Adviser, service chiefs, the DSS boss and himself, during which Buhari reportedly emphasised that security agencies must remain neutral and allow Nigerians to freely choose their leaders.

Alkali Baba recounted that on the morning of the APC primary, influential individuals claiming proximity to the President approached him, the DSS DG and the NIA DG with instructions to deploy security operatives to impose Lawan as the party’s candidate.

He said the security chiefs rejected the directive and sought clarification directly from Buhari, who reportedly laughed off the claim and made it clear he had endorsed no candidate, reiterating that the choice must be left to party members.

After the meeting, the schemers were informed that the President had no preferred candidate and that there would be no interference from the Presidency through security agencies.

The book concludes by lamenting that some individuals close to Buhari exploited his trust and misrepresented his intentions, actions it says were carried out without his knowledge and to the detriment of the country.