The claim that President Bola Tinubu enabled the election victory of former President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2015 election has returned to public debate.
Garba Shehu, Buhari’s former media aide, also embellishing the former president’s image, claimed that Buhari rejected a 10% kickback from a top construction firm.
The company handles high-profile government projects—roads, bridges, and railway lines. But Buhari made it clear he wouldn’t tolerate any corrupt practices.
“We have been informed that percentage cuts (10 per cent or more) are built into your contracts,” Buhari told them at the State House. “This must stop. We will not accept kickbacks.”
The Watch That Came Back
Garba Shehu also recounted another incident. A Nigerian-American jewellery magnate gifted Buhari a diamond-plated wristwatch.
Buhari praised the brand’s global success, but he wasn’t swayed. “He directed that the gift be politely returned. I dutifully did so,” Shehu said in his book According to the President.
Buhari’s firm stance shocked many corporate visitors, who were used to different standards. “Nothing you give is free,” Buhari told them. “All such costs are built into government contracts. We don’t want that to continue.”
Who Made Buhari President in 2015?
The drama continued online and in political circles after Boss Mustapha, former SGF, countered the conventional narrative that Tinubu made Buhari President.
Mustapha was speaking at the launch of a book written by Mr Shehu. The event brought together an impressive lineup of dignitaries — from former Heads of State and Vice Presidents to Ministers and leading media figures.
However, Temitope Ajayi, Tinubu’s media aide, disagreed sharply with Mustapha. He argued that Buhari’s prior losses in 2003, 2007, and 2011 proved one thing:
“There is no way he would have won the election to be President without first becoming the presidential candidate of APC,” Ajayi said.
He added that Tinubu mobilised South West APC governors and delegates at the 2014 APC primaries in Lagos.
“Every effort and support that made it possible for Buhari to win should never be diminished,” Ajayi insisted.
APC Founding Member Weighs In
Osita Okechukwu, one of APC’s founding members, supported Ajayi’s claim.
He said Mustapha didn’t understand the real politics behind Buhari’s 2015 victory because he wasn’t part of the struggle in 2003.
“Boss Mustapha relied only on mathematical calculations of votes in 2015, and not on realpolitik,” Okechukwu said.
He recalled how the court’s minority ruling in 2003 favoured Buhari’s case. “Justice Sylvester Nsofor’s minority judgment showed Buhari had majority votes.”
Okechukwu urged everyone to stop the controversy. “There is no need for this. Let’s acknowledge all the hands that helped make history.”
President Tinubu is up for reelection in 2027 and appears to be bracing up for stiff opposition. Some Buhari loyalists seem to be pulling away from the president.
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