Presidency: Kyari, Others Move Against NSA, Future Uncertain

By Fola James

President Muhammadu Buhari had a meeting with all his service chiefs on Monday in the absence of his National Security Adviser, Babagana Mongonu.

President Buhari has refused to sack the service chiefs despite sporadic calls on him to do so.

Mungonu’s seat was the only one empty during the meeting, held in Aso Rock, Nigeria’s seat of power raising diverse suggestions on the future of the Borno state born NSA and retired major general.

Some sources said the NSA was out of the country, that’s why he was not at the important meeting.

Top security brass present at the emergency meeting are Abayomi Olonisakin, Chief of Defence Staff, Tukur Burutai, Chief of Army Staff, Sadique Abubakar, Chief of Air Staff, and Ibok Ekwe Ibas, Chief of Naval Staff.

The Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu also attended the meeting to discuss worsening insecurity in the country.

Recall that the NSA had last week accused the president’s chief of staff, Abba Kyari of usurping presidential powers of commander in chief.

Mongonu, said top military brass in the country were now taking orders from the CoS, Kyari.

The development, he said, is responsible for the rising insecurity in the country.

He explained that the fight against insecurity lack coordination because of Kyari’s meddlesomeness on area that’s clearly not his responsibility.

Militants Boko Haram, bandits and other armed groups have stepped up attacks in some northern states, despite government’s claim that it has defeated insurgency.

Just last week alone, Boko Haram attacked villages in Borno and Adamawa, leaving many dead in its wake.

Penultimate week bandits also killed 30 people in the president’s state, Katsina, children and women were among the victims.

The meeting with the service chiefs, therefore, political watchers insist was called by the president to assure Nigerians that he’s on top of the issue.

The thinking is that the president is trying to assert himself after allegation by his NSA that Kyari is now the one performing his duties.

“What the president is trying to say, is that he’s still the commander in chief, that he has not ceded his presidential powers to anyone,” Jude Edafe, a political analyst say.

He however, stated that the absence of the NSA is worrisome “because procedurally, the NSA coordinates the service chiefs and report to the president.”

But there are reports that the NSA intentionally shunned the meeting in protest of how he has been maligned by the president’s chief of staff.

Unofficial sources in the presidency also told the magazine that Mungonu was not invited to the meeting with service chiefs.

If this is true, the power struggle in the presidency could get messier in the next few days as those involved will try to assert themselves, analysts say.

Sources told the magazine that clandestine moves have been ramp up to ease the NSA out of the presidency by those offended by his memo to President Buhari, which was later leaked to the media.

The memo reads in part: “Chief of Staff to the president is not a presiding head of security, neither is he sworn to an oath of defending the country.

“As such, unprofessional practices such as presiding over meetings with service chiefs and heads of security organisations as well as ambassadors and high commissioners to the exclusion of the NSA and/or supervising ministers are a violation of the Constitution and directly undermine the authority of Mr President.

“Such acts and continued meddlesomeness by chief of staff have not only ruptured our security and defence efforts, but have slowed down any meaningful gain that Mr. President has sought to achieve,” Mungonu said.

Meanwhile, the sources did not say whether President Buhari will succumb to pressure by powerful presidential aides to sack Mungonu from office.