TheCable

Junaid Mohammed, a second republic lawmaker, says Mamman Daura, Muhammadu Buhari’s nephew, tried controlling Vice President Yemi Osinbajo while the President was on medical vacation.

He said Daura claims “the government belongs to him and his ilk” and they will do “all they can” to run the it

“Sometimes, Daura was in the habit of trying to reach out to Osinbajo and suggest what Osinbajo should do and should not do,” he told PUNCH in an interview.

Mohammed said Buhari has lost hold of control over the presidency and that the country is being controlled by Daura, who’s “more powerful” than Buhari.

“Mamman Daura has never been elected into any office in his life. As I speak, the man does not hold any piece of paper indicating that he has held any position. But he is more powerful than Buhari. He is effectively in charge of the country, under the presidency,” he said.

Mohammed described Daura’s purported control over the nation’s affairs as “scandalous”.

He said: “The grapevine in the north is very leaky. We talk to people who talk to him. We talk even to (Buhari’s) family members who are unhappy with the way things are going.

“They (the cabal) are ruthless. If they find that they can have somebody who will replace Buhari and do their own bidding, they wouldn’t mind collaborating with him.”

Mohammed also said the presidency under Buhari has added more to the challenges facing the country and that it is “unrealistic” to expect Nigerians to be happy with the state of the nation.

“We now have a situation whereby the presidency is becoming too powerful, and unfortunately, the president is not in charge. There are some shady characters whom nobody elected,” he said.

The elder statesman said it will not be easy for Buhari “to free himself from the cabal” because “he (Buhari) has already given the impression that he is under the cabal’s spell.

Mohammed further alleged that the cabal in question rented those that jubilated over the president’s return, adding that there was “nothing genuine” about the jubilation.

According to him, “they were rented crowds. We know how they were recruited. Some of the characters in the cabal and their lackeys have a voice in the media. Their thugs in town were the people who were given money and some transport was provided for them. Some came from as far as Kaduna, Jos and other areas — so, I’m not surprised”.