These are not the best of times for the Chief of Staff to the President, Rt Hon Femi Gbajabiamila as strong indications have emerged that he may have fallen out of favour with his principal, President Bola Tinubu.
Gbajabiamila is currently facing allegations of trading off appointments in the administration of Tinubu to the highest bidder, a development that is said to have led to a clash between him and some core loyalists of the President.
It was gathered that the development may eventually cost the former Speaker of the House of Representatives his current job with the President.
Already, Tinubu’s loyalists who are insisting that Gbajabiamila must be sent out of the Presidential Villa have begun to plot his sack, it was learnt.
Specifically, Gbajabiamila is being accused by Tinubu’s loyalists of being in the habit of making some smart changes to the lists of appointments approved by Tinubu, by allegedly replacing the individuals with his own favourites, in a crafty manner.
Presidency sources said the alleged antics of the Chief of Staff to the President got to a head last week when he allegedly replaced the name of the person approved by Tinubu as the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Ekiti State with that of a former commissioner in the cabinet of the immediate past governor of the state, Dr Kayode Fayemi.
Recall that last week Tinubu appointed 10 RECs of the Independent National Electoral Commission.
Presidency source said the REC originally appointed and approved by Tinubu for Ekiti State was a one-time legal adviser to INEC, Mrs Oluwatoyin Babalola, but Gbajabiamila allegedly replaced her name with that of the former commissioner under Fayemi.
Gbajabiamila was alleged to have done same thing with the National Social Investments Programme. Tinubu was said to have originally recommended one Halima Sheu for the position. Sheu was said to have been sacked by the immediate past Minister of Finance, Sadiya Farouq because she was campaigning for Tinubu, who was said to have assured her of returning to the same position or getting a higher office once he became the President. This was allegedly made impossible by Gbajabiamila.
It was learnt that when the names of the new INEC RECs were announced, two members of the cabinet complained to President Tinubu that the individual they nominated had been replaced with a different person. This development was said to have angered Tinubu, who was sure that the original nominee’s name for Ekiti was included before he approved and signed the list.
The President was said to have immediately summoned Gbajabiamila, who was said to have been unable to defend himself when Tinubu questioned him about the change in the list of those he approved as INEC RECs.
The Presidency source said Tinubu, who was now very angry with his CoS, at this juncture, told Gbajabiamila that the development confirmed what he had been hearing that he had been in the habit of changing whatever he approved and signed without informing him. The President, it was learnt, mentioned three instances in the past that Gbajabiamila had done this. He was said to have expressed his anger, giving Gbajabiamila “the last warning.” Tinubu then directed that the woman’s name must be returned to the list.
The Presidency source added that this development intensified the plot by Tinubu’s core loyalists to get Gbajabiamila sacked from Tinubu’s cabinet.
They are said to be angry that this is the fifth time Gbajabiamila would allegedly embarrass the President and must therefore be eased out of Tinubu’s cabinet. It was learnt that the plot by Tinubu’s core loyalists was to remove Gbajabiamila as CoS to President and appoint him as Nigeria’s ambassador to a foreign country.
It was further learnt that as part of the plot to ease Gbajabiamila out of Aso Rock Presidential Villa, Tinubu’s Private Principal Secretary, Akeem Okunola, is now performing some of the functions of the Chief of Staff to the President.
It was also gathered that President Tinubu is already setting up a team that will “assist” Gbajabiamila in performing his duties.