…Ex-SGF Says APC Would Have Lost Without Tinubu’s Political Machinery, Funding and Strategic Intervention; Claims President Has ‘Changed’ Since Moving to Abuja
By Jeremy Fregene
Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, has launched a blistering rebuttal of claims by his successor, Boss Mustapha, insisting that President Bola Tinubu—not Muhammadu Buhari’s northern vote bank alone—was the decisive force behind Buhari’s emergence as Nigeria’s President in 2015.
In what amounts to one of the strongest insider accounts yet of the events leading to the landmark election, Lawal said Mustapha’s assertion that Buhari already had enough votes to win the presidency without Tinubu was “false” and ignored the political realities that produced the All Progressives Congress (APC)’s historic victory.
Lawal’s intervention comes a year after Mustapha, speaking at the July 2025 unveiling of Garba Shehu’s book in Abuja, argued that Buhari brought about 12 million northern votes into the APC merger, while the legacy parties, including Tinubu’s Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), contributed only about three million votes.
The remarks sparked fierce reactions from the Presidency, with presidential aides accusing Mustapha of attempting to rewrite history.
But Lawal, who played a central role in Buhari’s presidential campaign, said the former SGF’s account ignored the political manoeuvring that secured Buhari the APC presidential ticket in the first place.
Recounting events preceding the APC presidential primary in 2014, Lawal said Buhari was on the verge of losing the party’s ticket as most of the North-West delegates were backing former Kano State Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, while the South-East largely supported then Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha.
According to him, Tinubu’s intervention changed everything.
“On the day of the APC convention in 2014, the North-West was supporting Kwankwaso and Atiku while the South-West was waiting for Tinubu’s direction. The South-East was supporting Okorocha, and he was likely to win the presidential ticket based on our numbers,” Lawal recalled.
He said he and former Bayelsa State Governor Timipre Sylva first approached former Adamawa State Governor Murtala Nyako and former Sokoto State Governor Aliyu Wamakko to persuade them to support Buhari but failed.
“We then went to Tinubu that night, showed him Buhari’s voting history in the North and explained the situation. Bola did not sleep that night. He personally went back to Governor Nyako and Governor Wamakko and persuaded them to support Buhari.”
According to Lawal, Tinubu’s intervention immediately swung the North-West behind Buhari and aligned the South-West with him, ultimately securing victory at the convention.
“That was when we got the North-West votes back for Buhari. At the convention, Buhari had the North-West and South-West and picked up votes from other zones while the remaining candidates split the rest.”
Lawal said Buhari himself acknowledged Tinubu’s critical role whenever concerns were raised about the President’s educational background and personal history.
“So anytime Buhari complained about Tinubu, I reminded him of history. I told him, ‘You knew all this when you sought his support and he gave it to us. Why bite the finger that fed us?’ Buhari agreed and changed.”
He maintained that Tinubu’s contribution extended far beyond delegate mobilisation.
Lawal disclosed that Buhari’s campaign nearly suffered a crippling financial setback after an unnamed wealthy businessman who had agreed to bankroll the campaign allegedly backed out following pressure from the administration of then President Goodluck Jonathan.
According to him, he and Timipre Sylva had met the businessman aboard his yacht because the donor did not want to be publicly associated with Buhari’s campaign.
“After the meeting he agreed to support us financially, but as we were leaving, a police officer saw us. Timipre became worried the information would get to Jonathan, and it did. The businessman was summoned to Abuja and threatened, and that was how we lost the funding.”
Lawal said Tinubu immediately stepped in to rescue the campaign financially.
“That was when we went to Tinubu. Through him we raised sufficient funds to run Buhari’s campaign.”
He further revealed that Tinubu personally financed what he described as a separate campaign for then vice-presidential candidate Yemi Osinbajo and hired American political consultants—whom he claimed had previously worked on former US President Barack Obama’s campaign—to rebrand Buhari’s public image.
“They were doing professional work on Buhari’s image. I know that cost Tinubu over ₦2 billion. Whenever there was a need for expenditure, he didn’t go to the campaign purse. He spent from his own pocket.”
Lawal also spoke extensively about his relationship with Tinubu, describing him as an exceptionally compassionate and generous politician before becoming President.
“President Tinubu was an excellent human being before he became president. If you were in trouble, he would go to whatever length to solve it. He listened to advice, was kind and sympathetic.”
However, he said the President underwent a dramatic transformation while pursuing his presidential ambition.
“I know the exact time he changed. Around 2022, when Tinubu relocated to Abuja for his presidential ambition, some northern associates surrounded him and caged him. They introduced him to religious bigots who claimed they knew Buhari, and that was when he started changing.”
Lawal lamented that the Tinubu he once knew no longer exists.
“He was a good man then, but he has lost his soul now. He used to be someone who was always in charge, but he no longer looks in charge. As long as he gets his own share of whatever he’s looking for, the rest can loot however they want. I wish he could go back to what he was before. Nigeria will be great.”
The former SGF also claimed the President’s health should become a priority after completing his first term in office.
“President Tinubu is not a healthy man. Nigerians are not fooled whenever he travels to France. He has done four years. He should face his health.”
Lawal further alleged that Tinubu was never driven by material possessions, saying his typical breakfast consisted of banana and groundnuts, while adding that the President was known to enjoy smoking silk cigarettes, although he was unsure whether he had quit.
On former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s relationship with Buhari, Lawal dismissed suggestions that the former minister enjoyed any special status with the late President.
“People thought Amaechi was Buhari’s adopted son. It was Amaechi who thought he was Buhari’s adopted son,” he said.
He also dismissed claims that former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai was ever politically close to Tinubu, alleging that El-Rufai had at one time travelled to Lagos and openly attempted to undermine Tinubu’s political influence by boasting about confronting so-called godfathers.
Discover more from Keeping Them Honest
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.