A former National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd), on Sunday denied reports that he discreetly campaigned for the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, President Muhammadu Buhari, while serving as President Goodluck Jonathan’s NSA in 2015.
Dasuki said as the NSA between 2012 and 2015, he never campaigned for the APC or Buhari, in whatever shape or form before, during or after the 2015 presidential election.
In a statement yesterday, the former NSA said he was only involved in the unsuccessful attempt at forging an alliance between the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), prior to the 2011 elections.
He noted that at the point of his accepting the appointment to serve as NSA in 2012, he told Jonathan that he had a relationship with Buhari of CPC, Senator Bola Tinubu of ACN and Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu of ANPP, among other opposition elements, and that his appointment would not cause him to sever the relationship.
Dasuki among others was said to have introduced Buhari to the then leader of ACN, Tinubu, on the planned political alliance prior to 2011 presidential election.
It was also alleged that Dasuki, Malam Adamu Adamu, the current Minister of Education; Malam Kabir Yusuf, the publisher of Daily Trust; and Mr. Wada Maida, former Chief Executive of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), visited the APC national leader in Lagos, before the 2011 polls.
But Dasuki said: “My attention has been drawn to a false report to the effect that I discreetly campaigned for Buhari and his party, APC, while I was serving as President Jonathan’s National Security Adviser. At first I found the report too ridiculous to take serious but on second thought, I felt it would be appropriate not only to debunk it but to put the records straight especially in view of politics of mischief and character assassination that is unfortunately the norms today.
“The truth is that I was involved in an attempt at forging an alliance between the ACN, ANPP, and CPC among others prior to the 2011 elections, which was not successful. My involvement in that political process ended after the elections of 2011.
“At the point of accepting the appointment to serve as National Security Adviser (NSA) in 2012, I made it clear to President Jonathan that I had relationships with General Buhari of CPC, Tinubu of ACN and Onu of ANPP, among others opposition elements and that my appoint would not cause me to sever the relationship. I, however, assured him that I would never betray him. As a man of honor, I kept to my words.
“Therefore, as NSA between 2012 and 2015, I never campaigned for APC or its candidate, Buhari, in whatever shape or form before, during or after the 2015 presidential election.
“I never worked at cross purposes with my boss, President Jonathan, as being recklessly insinuated by mischief makers on their blogs and social media.” – Thisday.
