It will be important to state before those reading this piece that as a fervent faithful of the All Progressives Congress (APC), I have utmost respect for His Excellency the Executive Governor of Kaduna state, Mallam Nasiru El-Rufai because he is one man who does not fail to state his mind no matter whose ox is gored. But as much as I respect him and his views, it is important that we do at times if not in most times, learn to tell ourselves the basic truth so as to prevent a misrepresentation of the facts especially as it has to do with his ‘leaked’ memo to the President on some national issues.
The memo which was ‘leaked’ to the press almost immediately after Mr. President came back from his 49 days medical vacation in the United Kingdom, if anything at all, was intended to make the Presidency to be seen to be at the defensive while placing Mallam El-Rufai as an alternative to the present arrangement we have at the Aso Rock Villa.
In the letter which has received acclaimed response considering the caliber of the personae that authoured it, had the intendment of painting the Presidency in almost the same way and manner that our well respected first lady virtually painted the Presidency in her famed BBC Hausa service Interview.
But if the expectation of El-Rufai to tarnish some key personalities in the President Muhammadu Buhari administration was a thing of success, leaves much to be told because at the end of it all, his memo has in a much larger perspective, exposed him as being ignorant of the personality of Mr. President.
While Mallam El-Rufai hobnobbed with the former ruling party Peoples Democratic Party PDP, he was ignorant of the fact that there were people who stood behind the present President and showed their belief in him no matter where the tide swung. One of such persons is the present Chief of Staff to Mr. President Abba Kyari. A man of impeccable character and integrity who remains tenacious in whatever he does.
It is therefore appalling and regrettable that Mallam El-Rufai in his memo which was filled with tantrums and denigrated references against the President’s key loyalists could afford to resort to cheap mendacity by suggesting that the Chief of Staff Abba Kyari does not have the capacity to help drive home Mr. President’s agenda for the people.
I wish to quote what he said about the present Chief of Staff…“The Chief of Staff is totally clueless about the APC and its internal politics at best as he was neither part of its formation nor a participant in the primaries, campaign, and elections,” … “In summary, neither of them has the personality, experience, and the reach to manage your politics nationally or even regionally’’.
It is indeed regrettable that El-Rufai could take such a position against the Chief of Staff. He clearly showed that he is a stranger to the President and not an insider as he has severally claimed otherwise he should have known that the Abba Kyari is one of those that have stood with the President even during the periods he claims he, Chief of staff was not in. One problem of history is that parties in history can easily twist the facts at ground to favour their whims and caprices and the governor of Kaduna state in his memo clearly showed that despite education and exposure people can still make this same mistake.
Alhaji Abba Kyari as a human being may have his own faults but it is not definitely in the manner which Mallam El-Rufai has painted it. Using the word “clueless” which has become a recurring decimal in our political lexicon, was aimed at whipping sentiments which was a really wrong move on his part. Abba Kyari is not clueless either to the workings of the All Progressives Congress APC or to the expectations of his position as the Chief of Staff to the President.
I have known Mallam Abba Kyari for many years in fact since as a child and I can say without fear of favor that he is the most disciplined person I have ever known. He is principled, a gentleman in all aspects and one of the experienced few we have who are in government today that have risen through the ranks of not only work, but life itself. Mr. President must have taken his time to choose for himself a Chief of Staff in the like of someone he knows, someone capable of handling the schedule and above all someone he trusts. As an anti corruption czar, Buhari is sure to be working with Nigerians who can look past bribery and corruption and Abba Kyari surely fits the bill.
In fact he is one of the most dedicated members of the President’s reform agenda and has shown this trait in all he has been doing in the Buhari presidency. So, if the likes of His Excellency Mallam Nasiru El-Rufai and whoever is prodding him to resort to such a clear representation of the facts that concerns Abba Kyari a respected Borno citizen is wont to continue with whatever he is doing, he should rather do his homework very properly because all he has said in his famed (?) memo to Mr. President amounts to a red herring and nothing more.
– Masta wrote in from Abuja