The powerful Chief of Staff to the President of Nigeria, Mallam Abba Kyari is dead. Kyari died on Friday, April 17 after contracting the deadly CoronaVirus from embarking on a trip to Egypt and then Germany to sign trade deals for Nigeria’s energy sector. He died due to COVID-19 complications after a near-one month battle with the virus.
A Kanuri from Borno State in NorthEast of Nigeria, Kyari was the former CEO of United Bank of Africa (UBA) and held degrees from the University of Cambridge and University of Warwick respectively. In 2015, he was appointed as the Chief of Staff by President Buhari till his demise and his tenure was renewed following a second-term win in the 2019 Presidential elections.
Kyari was one of the most powerful persons in Buhari’s cabinet. In opposition circles in Nigeria, he was touted as the de facto head of government and wielded a lot of power because he had the complete trust of President Buhari and was the conduit influencing policies and providing the access to anyone who needed to see the President.
