Professor Ibrahim Gambari has been appointed as the Chief of Staff to the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.).

Gambari’s appointment was announced by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, at the Federal Executive Council virtual meeting on Wednesday.

We had reported that Gambari arrived at the Presidential Villa about 10.53am on Wednesday.

Gambari was screened on arrival for COVID-19, including having his temperature checked and using a hand sanitiser before he was ushered into the main building.

Gambari, a 75-year-old Wambai of Ilorin Emirate, replaced Abba Kyari who died on April 17 from coronavirus-related complications.

The jostle for President Buhari’s new ‘gatekeeper’

Since the death of Kyari as a result of coronavirus complications, big names in Nigeria’s political echelon have been favoured to replace the Borno-born lawyer, businessman, economist and editor.

Among them were Adamu Adamu (minister of education), Boss Mustapha (secretary to the government of the federation), Ambassador Babagana Kingibe, Colonel Hameed Ibrahim Ali, retd (Customs comptroller genera), Major General Mohammed Monguno (national security adviser), Hadi Sirika (minister of aviation), Rotimi Amaechi (minister of transport) among others.

But on Tuesday, President Buhari took everyone by surprise with reports claiming he has favoured the Ilorin-born diplomat to continue the good job where his best friend of 45 years, Kyari, stopped.

Buhari was said to have had breakfast with his next chief of staff where he offered him the appointment.

The man, Ibrahim Agboola Gambari, will be Abba Kyari’s successor, becoming Nigeria’s 5th chief of staff since 1999. Source: UGC

Interestingly, the speculation became clear after Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu Gambari, Emir of Ilorin, reportedly wrote the president for entrusting the position on the valorous son of the kingdom.

“Out of the list of about 14 candidates available to the President, Gambari is the least exposed to the vagaries of Nigerian politics. He is a diplomat and an international bureaucrat,” a source from the presidency disclosed.

“The appointment was made to pick an apolitical fellow and to correct the mistake of the past where the Office of the Chief of Staff is exposed to politics and pressure from politicians.”

But who is Professor Gambari – Nigeria’s fifth chief of staff since 1999?

Born in Ilorin, Kwara state on November 24, 1944, Professor Ibrahim Agboola Gambari is a former minister of external affairs between January 1984 and August 1985.

He attended King’s College, Lagos for his secondary education and subsequently attended the London School of Economics where he obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Economics with specialisation in International Relations.

He later obtained his Masters degree (M.A.) in 1970 and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph. D.) degree in Political Science /International Relations in 1974 from Columbia University, New York, United States (US).

Gambari began his teaching career in 1969 at City University of New York before working at University of Albany. He also taught at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), in Zaria, Kaduna State.

And he was a visiting professor at three universities in Washington, D.C: Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Georgetown University and Howard University.

He was also a research fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington D.C. and a resident scholar at the Bellagio Study and Conference Center, the Rockefeller Foundation-run centre, in Italy.

The Royal blood

Gambari is blue blood of Ilorin Emirate of the Fulani ruling class family. His nephew, Ibrahim Sulu Gambari, is the Emir of Ilorin.

Stints in Nigeria’s politics and international diplomacy

Gambari, a distinguished diplomat who has represented Nigeria in several international interfaces, was a minister of foreign affairs between 1984 and 1985 when Buhari was the military head of state.

He was also the chairman of the UN Special Committee Against Apartheid between 1990 and 1994.

In January 2012, Gambari was appointed by the Secretary-General of United Nations (UN), Ban Ki-moon, as Joint African Union-United Nations Special Representative for Darfur.

Atiku, Saraki, others congratulate Gambari

There has been an outpour of congratulatory messages to the newly appointed chief of staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Ibrahim Gambari who replaces the late Abba Kyari.

Boss Mustapha, Secretary to the Government of the Federation announced Gambari’s appointment at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting in Abuja.

Gambari resumed in the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Wednesday and participated in the FEC meeting presided over by the President Buhari.

Congratulating Gambari, former Nigeria vice president Atiku Abubakar is hopeful that the Kwara State-born chief of staff will utilise his skills in serving the country.

“Congratulations Professor Ibrahim Agboola Gambari, CFR on your appointment as Chief of Staff to Buhari,” Atiku tweeted on Wednesday.

“It is my hope and expectation and those of millions of Nigerians that you will deploy your varied skills garnered over the years in the service of our nation.”

In his congratulatory message, former Senate president Bukola Saraki describe Gambari as a decent man, a cerebral academic and disciplined diplomat.

Saraki, a former governor of Kwara State, believes that his fellow statesman “is coming in with the necessary pedigree that will help him to do well on the job.”

“I have no doubt that he will succeed on this onerous assignment. I urge all Nigerians to give him all the support that he needs to perform in office.”

Kwara State governor Abdulrasak Abdulrahman said Gambari’s appointment as the Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari “is a befitting development that is rooted in dedication, loyalty, and history.”

Prior to the official announcement which came on Wednesday, Emir of Ilorin, Gambari’s hometown, in a statement on Tuesday evening thanked Buhari “for appointing Professor Ibrahim Gambari as his new Chief of Staff.”

The Resident Representative to Nigeria for the United Nations Development Programme Mohamed Yahya also congratulated Gambari on his new appointment on Tuesday.

“I Congratulate Prof. Agboola Gambari former UN Under-Sec-General and a true PanAfricanist, for his appointment as the new Chief of Staff to Pres @MBuhari,” Yahya tweeted.

“Looking forward to forging partnerships that will continue to support the achievement of Nigeria and Africa’s devt agenda.”

Islamic agenda as usual