Unic Press UK: The Chief of Staff to Nigeria President, Abba Kyari, is dead.
Kyari served as the Chief of Staff from 27 August 2015 to 17 April 2020 when he joined his deceased ancestors.
In a statement at the early hours of Saturday, the Special Adviser to the President
(Media and Publicity), Femi Adesina, said:
“The Presidency regrets to announce the passage of the Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari. The deceased had tested positive to the ravaging COVID-19, and had been receiving treatment. But he died on Friday, April 17, 2020. May God accept his soul.”
Many Nigerians presumed that Abba Kyari has been Nigeria de facto president as he had the ears of the Nigeria president, and wielded enormous powers, holding brief for the president during some key meetings with top diplomats and other representatives of state actors.
At the outset of his second tenure of office, President Buhari had directed all the Ministers of the Republic to liaise with Kyari on all issues, and this appeared to many as another inkling on the enormous powers of the Chief of Staff.
In February 2020, a leaked letter dated 9 December 2019, which was inked by the National Security Adviser (NSA), retired Major-General Babagana Monguno, divulged that Monguno had accused the Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Abba Kyari, of interfering with the work of security/defense agencies in a way that undermines the internal security of Nigeria.
