- A former presidential spokesperson has alleged that a powerful cabal within late President Muhammadu Buhari's government rejected President Bola Tinubu's ministerial picks, including Dele Alake and Wale Edun
- The cabal reportedly backed Ahmad Lawan as consensus APC presidential candidate ahead of the 2022 primary, where Tinubu eventually prevailed
- Laolu Akande claims Tinubu was repeatedly sidelined within the Buhari administration despite his role in building the APC into a winning party
Laolu Akande, a former spokesperson to ex-Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, has alleged that a powerful cabal within former President Muhammadu Buhari's administration actively worked to undermine President Bola Tinubu, blocking his ministerial picks and backing a rival candidate during the 2022 All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary.
Laolu Akande, who hosts the political programme Inside Sources, made the claims in an interview with Symfoni TV published on Friday, October 24, offering a candid account of the political tensions that defined Buhari's presidency between 2015 and 2023.
Tinubu: Blocked appointments and political sidelining
According to Akande, the cabal within the Buhari presidency went as far as rejecting ministerial nominees that Tinubu had put forward, including Dele Alake, now minister of solid minerals, and Wale Edun, the former minister of finance. He described the rejections as a deliberate signal that Tinubu held no real influence over appointments in the administration.
"What did they not do against president Tinubu? Tell me. Between 2015 and 2023? The man was marginalised. I saw it with my own eyes," Akande said.
He claimed to have personally witnessed Tinubu being excluded during meetings, yet noted that the former Lagos governor chose patience over confrontation while waiting for his moment.
The consensus candidate controversy
Akande also linked the cabal to the push to install Ahmad Lawan, the former Senate President, as the APC's consensus presidential candidate ahead of the 2022 primary. In June of that year, then APC national chairman Abdullahi Adamu announced Lawan as the party's preferred candidate, a move that drew immediate and fierce resistance from members demanding a proper primary.
The party eventually held the primary election, where Tinubu defeated a field that included Lawan, Osinbajo, and former transportation minister Rotimi Amaechi to clinch the presidential ticket.
Akande suggested that this episode reflected the cabal's wider effort to shape Buhari's succession in a direction that would exclude Tinubu, and that those preferences may have contributed to Buhari's reluctance to publicly endorse any particular candidate.
Naira redesign and Tinubu's response
Akande also addressed the naira redesign policy introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria in the lead-up to the 2023 general election, describing it as a development that posed a serious threat to Tinubu's presidential campaign. He credited the then-candidate with responding to the crisis with clarity and decisive organisation, which he said ultimately helped Tinubu navigate a difficult period and proceed to victory.
Source: Legit.ng