The National Security Adviser, NSA, to the President, Major-General Mohammed Babagana Monguno (ret.) has been asked to vacate the presidential villa and he may not be attending security briefings and the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) Meetings, which is usually presided over by the President or Vice President forthwith.
It was gathered from a top source privy to the development that the directive was given by the Chief of Staff to the President, Mr. Abba Kyari.
Monguno did not attend a special security meeting between President Muhammadu Buhari and the service chiefs, which held behind closed-doors at the presidential villa on Monday.
It was further learnt exclusively that Monguno did not attend last week’s FEC meeting presided by President Buhari because of the directive.
Monguro has repeatedly clashed with Mr. Kyari over control of security and intelligence matters.
Last week the cold war between both top officials became public after two restricted memos written by the NSA to service chiefs and the President accusing Kyari of interference in security matters and issuing orders in variance to the president’s leaked to the press.
It was reliably gathered that all security branches – Army, Police, Air Force, DSS, and Navy have all withdrawn their officers serving at the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), in solidarity with Kyari.
Source who craved for anonymity said the move has tremendously degraded operations at the NSA and rendered the office irrelevant in the scheme of things.
The source further confirmed that Kyari, a lawyer by training and a former Managing Director of UBA Plc., alongside the very influential Mamman Daura (Buhari’s cousin) and businessman Mallam Isa Funtua, who all make up The Cabal, Buhari’s powerful kitchen cabinet, have chosen a replacement for Monguno.
Present at Monday’s security briefing were Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Abayomi Olonisakin, Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshall Sadique Abubakar, Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas and the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu.
After the closed-door meeting with President Buhari, the Service Chiefs moved to see Kyari in his office for another briefing.
