Abba Kyari | |
---|---|
Chief of Staff to the President | |
In office 27 August 2015 – 17 April 2020 | |
President | Muhammadu Buhari |
Preceded by | Jones Arogbofa |
Succeeded by | Ibrahim Gambari |
Personal details | |
Born | Borno, Northern Region, British Nigeria (now Borno State, Nigeria) | 23 September 1952
Died | 17 April 2020 Lagos, Nigeria | (aged 67)
Spouse | Hajiya Kulu Kyari |
Children | 4 |
Alma mater |
University of Warwick University of Cambridge Nigerian Law School International Institute for Management Development |
Profession | Lawyer and banker [1] |
Awards | Order of the Niger |
Abba Kyari CFR OON (23 September 1952 – 17 April 2020) [2] was a Nigerian lawyer [3] who served as Chief of Staff to the President of Nigeria from August 2015 to April 2020. [4]
Kyari was born on 23 September 1952, to a Shuwa Arab family from Borno. He was educated in St. Paul's College in Wusasa Zaria, and later considered joining the Nigerian Army following advice from Mamman Daura and Ibrahim Tahir. [5] In 1976, he met General Muhammadu Buhari who was then Governor of Borno State. [6]
He graduated with a bachelor's degree in sociology from the University of Warwick in 1980, [7] and also obtained a law degree from the University of Cambridge. [8] Kyari was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1983 after attending the Nigerian Law School. [9] In 1984, he obtained a master's degree in law from the University of Cambridge. [10] He later attended the International Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland, [11] and in 1992 and 1994 participated in the Harvard Business School's Program for Leadership Development. [12]
Kyari worked for the law firm Fani-Kayode and Sowemimo for some time after his return to Nigeria. [13]
From 1988 to 1990, he was editor with the New Africa Holdings Limited Kaduna. He was a Commissioner for Forestry and Animal Resources in Borno State in the 1990s. [14]
From 1990 to 1995, Kyari was the secretary to the board of the African International Bank Limited, a subsidiary of Bank of Credit and Commerce International. [14]
Kyari was an executive director in charge of management services at the United Bank for Africa, and was later appointed the chief executive officer. In 2002, he was appointed a board director of Unilever Nigeria, and later served on the board of Exxon Mobil Nigeria. [12]
In August 2015, Kyari was appointed Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari. [15] [16] As chief of staff, he was widely considered to be the face of the "cabal" and the most powerful person in the Buhari administration. [17] [18]
During the administration's first term, he worked mainly behind the scenes to implement the president's agenda. [19] In 2019 with Buhari's re-election for a second term, he ordered his cabinet to channel all requests through Kyari's office [20] — further enhancing his influence within government circles, and being labelled as the de facto head of government. [21]
In 2017, following a leaked memo, Kyari became embroiled in a public argument with the Head of Civil Service, [22] who was later removed from office and arrested. [23] [24] In 2020, in another leaked memo, Babagana Monguno the National Security Adviser accused Kyari of meddling in matters of national security. [25]
Kyari was married to the sister-in-law of Ibrahim Tahir, [26] and had four children, Aisha, Nurudeen, Ibrahim, Zainab. [27] [5]
On 24 March 2020, it was made public that he had tested positive for COVID-19, following an official trip to Germany nine days before. [28] There were reports that he had been flown out of the country for treatment, [29] and Reuters later reported he had "a history of medical complications, including diabetes". [30]
On 29 March 2020, Kyari announced he was being moved from isolation in Abuja to Lagos for "preventive treatment". [31] Kyari later died on the evening of 17 April 2020 at age 67. His death was a very huge blow to the nation. [32] He was eulogised by The Economist as "a largely honourable man who went to the heart of a thoroughly corrupt and dysfunctional system, aiming to reform it—but who struggled to overcome its inertia amid a series of crises." [33]
Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) [34] | National honour in Nigeria |
Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR) [35] |