‘Cabal Forging Newspaper Editions For Buhari To Distort Real Events’, Says Biographer Omole

In a startling revelation, Dr. Charles Omole, author of ‘Muhammadu Buhari: From Soldier to Statesman’, a book chronicling late former President Buhari’s legacy, disclosed that a powerful cabal was forging newspaper editions to manipulate what the President read during his tenure in office.

Omole’s book, launched on Monday at the Aso Rock Villa Conference Centre with President Bola Tinubu and Buhari’s family members in attendance, has generated a lot of buzz.

Speaking on Channels TV’s current affairs programme, ‘Politics Today’ on Thursday night, the author and biographer Omole shed light on the extent to which individuals around the former president influenced him.

“Buhari loved reading newspapers, everyone knows that,” Omole said. “There were reports that the cabal went to the extent of curating his own version of newspapers, planting stories they wanted him to read.”

Omole explained that this manipulation of information was not unique to Buhari’s administration. “It may be happening to the present president (Tinubu), that he may not be seeing the actual news, and he may not be reading the actual newspaper, and that leaders in that form and shape and height get to the point of being fed with whatever those who are around him and managing them wanted.”

The author described Buhari’s leadership style as one of delegation: “Buhari by nature delegates. Once he delegates, he allows you to do the work. But the problem is that a lot of what he believed was happening, was curated by people around him.”

He added that there were moments during Buhari’s tenure where forged documents bearing the president’s signature surfaced, highlighting the extent of manipulation.

“The daughter of the president, who is an auditor, discovered that some of the signatures on documents were forged. That’s how powerful some people around the president were.”

Omole warned about the dangers of such influence, stressing the need for safeguards. “It’s not always the fault of the president. Sometimes, it’s the fault of those managing him. There must be systems in place to avoid state capture.”

Reflecting on the difference between Buhari’s administration and the current government under Tinubu, Omole noted, “With Buhari, there was one overarching cabal, but now there are multiple cabals. That has its plus and minus. A president may not know what’s happening in the country for days because everything is teleguided, even the (TV) channels he watches.”