NEWS
Retired General Danjuma Hamisu Ali-Keffi, Alleges APC Figures Secretly Sought US Records on Tinubu Before 2023 Primary
Retired Nigerian Army Major General Danjuma Hamisu Ali-Keffi has made a fresh and potentially explosive claim about the internal political manoeuvring that preceded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s emergence as the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2023 general election.
Ali-Keffi, a former General Officer Commanding (GOC) 1 Division of the Nigerian Army, alleged that two prominent members of the APC who were opposed to Tinubu’s presidential ambition secretly sought confidential information about him from United States government agencies.
The retired general made the allegation while recounting events surrounding the intense political contest within the ruling party over who would secure its presidential ticket for the 2023 election.
According to Ali-Keffi, the information was brought to his attention by former Director of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), Modibbo Hamman-Tukur, during a period of heightened political activity within the APC.
Ali-Keffi explained that he was serving as Commander of Operation Service Wide at the time, an operation he described as being focused on terrorism financing and the leadership structures of terrorist organisations.
He said Hamman-Tukur subsequently informed him about an alleged incident involving two influential APC figures who were opposed to Tinubu’s ambition.
According to the retired military officer, the individuals allegedly gained unauthorised access to the NFIU director’s office and sent requests to American government agencies seeking information concerning Tinubu, particularly in relation to terrorism financing.
“Two prominent APC people who were against Tinubu entered illegally into the office of NFIU director and sent messages to the US government agencies requesting confidential records of Bola Ahmed Tinubu on those issues — terrorism financing,” Ali-Keffi said.
The allegation, if independently established, would add another layer to the political intrigues that surrounded the APC’s 2023 presidential primary, which featured several heavyweight politicians seeking the party’s ticket.
Ali-Keffi said Hamman-Tukur was uncomfortable with what had allegedly occurred and later went to his office at about 2am after becoming aware of the development.
He claimed that the individuals allegedly involved realised that the NFIU director had arrived and subsequently left the office.
The retired general further alleged that a response was eventually received from the United States government concerning the request.
However, he stressed that he did not personally know the contents of the response or precisely what information it contained.
“I don’t know what the record is or related to current issues regarding his forfeiture and other issues, if I am not mistaken,” he said.
Ali-Keffi was also careful not to suggest that the alleged US records established that Tinubu had committed any offence. Rather, he emphasised that his account was based on information he said he received from Hamman-Tukur at the time.
He further alleged that some NFIU officials connected to the incident were subsequently dismissed and that the matter later became the subject of legal proceedings.
The retired general also mentioned former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai in his account, alleging that the former governor was aware of some information relating to the request for Tinubu’s records.
According to Ali-Keffi, El-Rufai was among the political figures who had knowledge of the matter but did not support the alleged attempt to use confidential information against Tinubu.
The allegations are particularly significant because the APC presidential contest in 2022 involved several prominent contenders and intense negotiations over the direction of the party after former President Muhammadu Buhari’s two-term administration.
Tinubu eventually emerged victorious at the APC presidential primary held in June 2022, securing the party’s ticket ahead of his rivals.
He subsequently defeated Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi of the Labour Party in the February 2023 presidential election.
Ali-Keffi said his own decision to support Tinubu during the political contest was influenced partly by arguments advanced by El-Rufai in favour of power moving from the North to the South.
He recalled that the argument was based on the need to preserve political balance and national unity after Buhari, a northerner, had completed his second term in office.
However, Ali-Keffi suggested that the outcome of the APC primary could have been dramatically different if the alleged information obtained from the United States had been made public at the time.
“Had people like the former NFIU Director and people like El-Rufai who were in the know, who were aware of that documents that were sent in respect of candidate Bola Ahmed Tinubu, had they allowed it to get to public domain at that time, I believe it would have perhaps hurt the candidaty of Ahmed Bola Tinubu. Certainly, he wouldn’t have gotten the ticket to fly the flag of APC at that time,” Ali-Keffi said.
Beyond the alleged NFIU episode, Ali-Keffi also recounted another conversation which he said involved former Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) chairman Muhammad Nami and an unnamed powerful minister who was believed to have been close to Buhari.
According to the retired general, Nami approached the minister during the United Nations General Assembly in New York in an attempt to persuade him to support Tinubu’s presidential bid.
Ali-Keffi said the minister expressed reservations about Tinubu and allegedly warned that the former Lagos State governor could take action against certain individuals if he eventually became president.
“Look, Ahmed Tinubu is going to come after them. He was going to do this and that. You people don’t know this,” Ali-Keffi recalled the minister as saying.
Nami, according to Ali-Keffi, continued to argue in favour of a Southern presidency, maintaining that giving the APC ticket to a Southern candidate would help promote political balance and national cohesion.
Tinubu ultimately secured the APC ticket and went on to win the 2023 presidential election. But more than three years after the election, Ali-Keffi says he has changed his position on the decision he made at the time.
The retired general openly expressed regret over his vote for Tinubu and said he would no longer support the ruling APC at the next election.
“I regret actually voting for him,” he said.
He was even more direct about his political position going forward.
“I’m not going to vote APC next election,” Ali-Keffi said.