"Buhari's Fund Approval Hindered by Cabal, Compromising Security – Former NSA Monguno"

Table of Contents

1. Funds Withheld by Powerful Interests
2. Intelligence Warning and Supplier Change
3. Financial Frustration of the NSA Office
4. Aisha Buhari's Experiences in Aso Rock

Former National Security Adviser (NSA) Babagana Monguno has disclosed that certain funds authorized by former President Muhammadu Buhari for his office were intentionally withheld by influential figures within the Presidency.

Monguno, who held the NSA position from 2015 to 2023, shared this information in a new book titled From Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari.

This biography of the late president was authored by Charles Omole and was launched at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

In the book, Monguno detailed that the funding issues began after he acted on intelligence received from the Commander of the Presidential Air Fleet.

He mentioned that the commander alerted him that the company supplying fuel to the fleet was under investigation, which could create a security risk if the firm were ultimately indicted.

Following this advice, Monguno stated he wrote to Buhari recommending a change in the supplier. He indicated that the president agreed and approved the recommendation.

However, he noted that this decision revealed “entrenched interests” within the Presidency.

Monguno alleged that the late Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, was the first to confront him regarding the decision, asking, “Why did you do this?”

He further claimed that Buhari’s nephew, Mamman Daura, was also displeased and believed the decision was unjust to the fuel supplier.

Monguno asserted that the Minister of Finance was manipulated to financially undermine his office.

“The Minister of Finance, who owed allegiance to Mamman Daura, was enlisted to withhold funds from the NSA office even after Buhari's approval. Both Buhari and Nigerians were victims of the Cabal that excessively enriched itself,” Monguno stated.

According to him, the lack of funding for the NSA office severely compromised Nigeria’s security system.

He shared that the funds left by his predecessor had been depleted, while subscriptions for essential security systems and partnerships with foreign agencies had lapsed.

Monguno also mentioned that surveillance equipment surrounding the Presidential Villa relied on the NSA’s budget, but approvals for its maintenance and upgrades were consistently delayed.

Additionally, he indicated that even when Buhari approved specific appointments, a “counter-note from a gatekeeper” was sometimes used to overturn the decision.

“You do not need a conspiracy to weaken a system; you merely need repeated petty sabotage,” he remarked.

The book also includes claims from former First Lady Aisha Buhari regarding her experiences in Aso Rock.

She revealed that rumors within the Villa once led her husband to suspect that she intended to harm him, disrupting his feeding routine and contributing to the illness that sidelined him for several months in 2017.

According to her, the gossip fostered temporary mistrust between them, prompting Buhari to alter his habits, including locking his room and skipping meals.

“This is considering his long history of nutritional challenges. Buhari’s illnesses were neither enigmatic nor caused by poisoning,” she clarified.

The book noted that after Buhari relocated from Kaduna to the Presidential Villa, the responsibility for his diet shifted to official handlers, resulting in missed meals and discontinued supplements.

Aisha Buhari stated that this significantly weakened him and marked the onset of his health issues.

She also alleged that mistrust within the Presidency, which included surveillance and the monitoring of private conversations, contributed to the anxiety during Buhari’s final years.