In a stunning revelation, former First Lady Aisha Buhari has provided a detailed and intimate account of the eight-year presidency of her husband, Muhammadu Buhari, alleging that a powerful cabal effectively hijacked Nigeria's seat of power, Aso Rock Villa.
The Shadow Government Inside the Villa
Aisha Buhari claims that from the moment President Buhari assumed office in 2015, a small circle of unelected power-brokers reset the hierarchy around him. She states that women who campaigned alongside her were sidelined and access to the President became purely transactional. She insists the term 'cabal' is not a rumor but a reality, describing it as a network of elderly relatives and associates who viewed her strong character as a threat to their influence.
According to her testimony, which forms a key part of the book 'From Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari' by Dr. Charles Omole, this group commandeered proximity to the President. They styled themselves as interpreters of his will and gatekeepers against his own wife. Her daughter even warned her to reach an "arrangement" with this old guard, an idea Aisha rejected, saying she would not negotiate space with "septuagenarians."
Surveillance and the Erosion of Trust
Aisha Buhari made a particularly serious allegation about privacy within the family quarters. She claimed that individuals close to the President planted recording devices in private rooms, turning living spaces into listening posts. Confidential conversations were harvested and relayed to this inner circle, who used the information to heighten suspicion and tighten their control over who could see the President.
She stressed this was not authorized security protocol but an informal intelligence system run for personal leverage. The result, she said, was a severe erosion of trust within the First Family and a widening gap between President Buhari and anyone outside the privileged inner ring. She observed that her own partnership with her husband carried little institutional weight, realizing the "circle had tightened" when she saw a ministerial list drafted outside Abuja.
Medical Missteps and the Health Controversy
One of the most critical parts of her account addresses the widespread speculation about President Buhari's health. Aisha Buhari insisted that his 154-day medical leave in London in 2017 was misunderstood. She dismissed rumors of organ failure or body doubles, arguing instead that his health deterioration began with disrupted nutrition and routine after Villa aides sidelined a dietary programme she had overseen for years.
She recalls convening a meeting with the President’s physician, Chief Security Officer, housekeeper, and the then-Director-General of the SSS to outline a care plan involving scheduled meals, supplements, vitamins, and rest for an ageing body. She alleges this plan was ignored. Gossip then turned into suspicion, with advisers telling Buhari her supplements were harmful. For about a week, she claimed, he believed them, leading to locked doors, changed habits, and halted vitamin intake.
Aisha acknowledged the toll of Buhari's age and history, including his time in the Civil War and early-life smoking. When his final hospitalization came, doctors diagnosed pneumonia, an illness serious for ageing lungs. Public speculation, however, pointed to cancer or leukaemia. She argues this uncertainty was fuelled by her husband's administration's weakness in strategic communication, where silence created a vacuum filled by rumor.
Her restrained yet vivid testimony paints a portrait of a presidency where constitutional authority was rivaled by the influence of unelected courtiers, affecting everything from national governance to the President's personal well-being and family trust.
