Garba Shehu, the former Senior Special Assistant on Media to the late President Muhammadu Buhari, has issued a rebuttal to a statement made by former President Goodluck Jonathan regarding Boko Haram’s alleged choice of Buhari as a mediator.
Shehu denied Jonathan’s assertion that the terrorist group nominated Buhari to represent them in peace talks with the government.
The New Daily Prime reported that Jonathan made the disclosure while speaking at the public presentation of Scars, a book authored by former Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor (retd.), in Abuja.
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Shehu in a statement posted on his X page on Saturday suggested that if the statement was intended as a campaign statement for a potential 2027 presidential bid, Jonathan was “making a false start.”
Shehu insisted that the deceased Boko Haram leaders, Muhammed Yusuf and Abubakar Shekau, never nominated Buhari for any such role.
He pointed out that Shekau routinely threatened and condemned Buhari, emphasising that the retired General’s ideology was in direct opposition to the terrorist group’s.
He further highlighted a 2014 incident where Buhari narrowly escaped a Boko Haram bomb attack on his life in Kaduna, an attack that injured his personal staff.
Shehu stressed that Buhari’s political campaigns consistently focused on combating Boko Haram and restoring security, positioning him as the group’s direct adversary.
Shehu recalled that at the time the nomination story circulated, Buhari, who was then the National Leader of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), denied knowledge of the appointment.
The then CPC National Secretary, Buba Galadima, stated that Buhari considered the report “just speculation” and would not comment until he was officially contacted.
Shehu clarified that the misleading information originated from a press conference staged by a terrorist faction, possibly sponsored by Buhari’s opponents in Maiduguri.
“A person identified as Abu Mohammed Ibn Abdulaziz had named Buhari and other prominent figures, including Bukar Ibrahim, Shettima Monguno, and Ambassador Gaji Gatimari, as preferred mediators.”
However, Shehu stressed that the main Boko Haram leaders quickly condemned Abdulaziz, stating that he lacked the mandate of their leader, Imam Shekau.
Shehu echoed the sentiment of the late CPC National Publicity Secretary, Rotimi Fashekun, who had previously accused Jonathan and the then-ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of exploiting Buhari’s purported nomination for political reasons to divert attention from massive looting and growing insecurity.
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He said Fashekun had then defended Buhari as a “quintessential patriot” and suggested the existence of a “Political Boko Haram,” which he alleged the PDP-led Federal Government, FG, represented.
Shehu adviced to Jonathan was to find a better story to tell Nigerians if he intends to win in 2027.
