Tinubu isolated, misinformed by those he trusts – Hakeem
The immediate past adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on political affairs, Dr. Hakeem Baba Ahmed, said the president is isolated and being misinformed by those he trusts about the true situation of things in Nigeria.
Dr Hakeem who shared his candid reflections of the administration during an appearance on ARISE TV last night, dismissed the rumours that Vice President Kashim Shettima is being systematically sidelined by President Tinubu.
He said the president is “really and genuinely isolated,” whether by choice or circumstance, and stressed that this isolation poses a challenge for the country.
“The bottom line is, he ought to be available for the people he trusted and worked for him. And that’s the problem for the country, not for him,” he said.
“If you hear people who are close to him speak about Nigeria, you will hear as if they’re living in different worlds. That is the most frustrating thing for me.”
He disclosed that for the time he spent as political adviser, he did not have the opportunity to interact with President Tinubu officially.
“I only saw President Tinubu three times in the mosque in the presidential villa, but I had never had a chance to sit down and talk with President Tinubu.
“I think part of the problem is that Tinubu never had time for people like us. I don’t think he had time for a lot of people working for him.”
Dr Hakeem, who served in the Office of the Vice President, revealed that he joined the government with high hopes and expectations, but ultimately found the experience disappointing.
When asked whether Vice President Kashim Shettima is being systematically sidelined by President Tinubu, Dr Hakeem said “no, I didn’t see any of these…”
He explained that the perceived marginalisation of the vice presidency is not unique to this administration “if the president feels that the office of the vice president is not that important in the administration—and we have seen that many times—basically, that was what I met.”
Dr Hakeem blamed the situation to the lack of defined schedules for vice presidents despite their status as the nation’s second-highest-ranking officials, noting that this has been a recurring issue across administrations.
He believes that the President seeing and speaking with the Vice President almost daily is not enough, because the position demands more than just conversation.
Reflecting on the state of the nation, Baba Ahmed expressed concern over the growing despair among citizens.
“We work in the Villa and we go home and meet the people, and we know how the country is—how desperate people are, the difficult lives, the insecurity. People are losing hope, asking what is the value of this democracy. And sometimes people ask what are we doing there? Asking us, are we really advising the president about some of these things?”
He also emphasised the importance of having capable advisors addressing real issues.
“If the president has a quality of people talking and advising him about the real issues on ground, I think the country would be better.”
Dr Hakeem expressed serious misgivings about the current coalitions of political parties as alternative to the current administration.
