Spying, Power Games, Betrayal: Aisha Buhari Reveals Turmoil Inside Aso Villa

In a dramatic disclosure contained in the newly released biography From Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari by Dr. Charles Omole, former First Lady Aisha Buhari has alleged that a powerful network of aides, relatives and political elites transformed the Presidential Villa into what she described as a surveillance hub, undermining both her husband’s health and his presidency.

Chapter 22 of the book, titled “Revelations at Last: After the Silence, Aisha Buhari’s Account of the Villa and the Men Who Shaped a Presidency,” details what she portrays as betrayal, manipulation and internal power struggles at the highest levels of government.

According to Mrs Buhari, trusted insiders secretly planted listening devices in private spaces within the Villa and exploited recorded conversations to influence former President Muhammadu Buhari’s decisions. She further claimed that false narratives were deliberately spread about her role in managing her husband’s nutrition and supplements, actions she says contributed to the health crisis that forced Buhari’s prolonged hospitalisation in London in 2017.

Recalling the episode with grim irony, she said: “I have never seen someone in ICU watching television,” describing how Buhari, already out of intensive care, remained glued to TV while recovering abroad.

Behind the humour, however, were grave accusations. Addressing those she claimed recorded private conversations, she said bluntly: “You are not security agents.”

Mrs Buhari also challenged the perception of her role as merely ceremonial, recounting her active involvement during the 2014 campaign, including packing luggage, preparing meals and ensuring her husband stayed hydrated during grueling schedules.

“I am not a public person, but I realised I was part of it,” she said, stressing that public acceptance—not financial influence—secured Buhari’s political breakthrough in southern Nigeria. “Money is different; power is different. You must be accepted by the people.”

She said the unity that defined the 2015 campaign quickly disintegrated after they assumed office. Women who campaigned alongside her were excluded from the corridors of power, and she recalled encountering a ministerial list in Yola that sidelined key loyalists.

“From the very beginning, I had already been written out,” she said, adding that her daughter warned her that failure to reach “concrete arrangements” with entrenched power brokers would lead to problems.

Aisha Buhari described how the presidency changed her husband, turning the introverted soldier she married into a more isolated leader.

“He listened for only a few months, and then he became a different person—both better and worse,” she said.

She accused relatives and close associates of gaining disproportionate influence, effectively becoming power brokers within the Villa.

“These were men who could barely finish a cup of tea yet lusted after billions,” she alleged, claiming they bugged rooms and converted personal spaces into zones of constant surveillance.

Health Mismanagement, Not Poison — Aisha Buhari’s Account

Dispelling widespread rumours of poisoning or hidden illnesses, the former First Lady attributed Buhari’s 2017 health collapse to poor nutritional management rather than any chronic disease.

“He didn’t have a long-term illness. At that age, you care for someone like a child; immunity changes,” she explained.

She said she had personally managed his supplements before their time in office, but this routine was disrupted after aides sowed suspicion.

“They said I wanted to kill him. He believed it briefly, locked his room and stopped eating lunch,” she recalled.

According to her, once doctors in London prescribed stronger supplements, Buhari’s recovery was swift.

“After three days, he discarded the walking stick. After a week, he was receiving visitors,” she said, concluding: “That was both the beginning and the end of his illness. It was nutrition—poorly managed.”

Buhari’s Final Days and Cause of Death

The book also sheds light on Buhari’s final moments. Aisha Buhari said he died from acute pneumonia in London at the age of 82, dismissing rumours of cancer.

She attributed his condition to years of exposure during military service, smoking and harsh weather.

“He always coughed, even when laughing,” she said.

She rejected speculation about pulmonary lymphoma or leukaemia, noting that such conditions often share symptoms with pneumonia, leading to confusion.

Recalling his final hours, she said Buhari was too weak to lift his shoulder to adjust his pillow.

“Are you okay now?” she asked.

“Yes, thank you,” he whispered.

She left briefly to rest at 2 p.m., only to be drawn back by intuition at 4 p.m.—the moment he passed.

“We rarely arrive at the threshold of death before it happens,” she reflected.

Following his death, Aisha Buhari said she appealed to President Bola Tinubu for a dignified burial and expressed gratitude to Vice President Kashim Shettima and his wife, the Chief of Staff, her son Yusuf, and senior military officers who coordinated logistics.

She acknowledged Group Captain Abubakar Sadiq Adamu for transporting Buhari home in 2023 and later overseeing the solemn flight that returned his remains to Nigeria.

Reflecting on life after her husband’s passing, she said the influence of the so-called cabal was inseparable from Buhari himself.

“Their strength was him. Once he was gone, they feared my son and me,” she said, adding, “But we did not come to fight.”

She dismissed her critics as lacking capacity, stating: “He put the wrong people in the right places—and he did not change them for eight years.”

She also blamed weak communication during Buhari’s presidency for fuelling conspiracy theories.

“Simple, ordinary developments were turned into major conspiracies because there was no openness,” she concluded.