Ndume: Buhari was a more accessible president… Tinubu is shielded by aides

Ali Ndume, chief whip of the senate, has given Muhammadu Buhari a “thumbs-up” for “being a more accessible president”. 

Buhari was civilian president from 2015 to 2023.

Speaking in an interview on Arise TV on Friday, Ndume said it is difficult to have an appointment with President Bola Tinubu because the nation’s leader has been “shielded from reality” by some of his appointees.

Ndume added that during the administration of Olusegun Obasanjo “who was older than our president is now, in 24 hours, any senator has access to him, ministers go in and out. That is politics. You talk to the people, hear from the people”.

Obasanjo was president from 1999 to 2007.

Ndume, who represents Borno south senatorial district in the red chamber, added that access to Tinubu is not this difficult outside the walls of the presidential villa.

“If you know the president before now, you would know that the whole scenario has changed,” Ndume said.

“This is somebody, he stays in Lagos… if you go to Bourdillon, any day, any time in the night, you can go to Bourdillon at 2 O’clock in the morning and in most cases you would find President Tinubu receiving people and seeing them off.

“But now, if you go to the front of the villa, it’s like a graveyard because they don’t allow anybody to go and see Mr. President.

“During Buhari’s administration, which I thought was not that good… but if you compare this now to Buhari’s regime, you would give Buhari a thumbs-up. At least Buhari opens up, people come to see him.”

Ndume reiterated that most ministers do not have access to the president.

“There are some ministers who don’t have access to Mr. President. The only access they have to Mr. President is when they are invited. And some may never be invited,” he added.

“Or they can see the president when they go for council meetings. And you know, when they go for council meetings, by the time the president walks in, all of them are seated. And the president is always the first to leave.”

The senator said some of the president’s aides may be doing him more harm than good.

“Besides shielding Mr. President, they always give him assurance that everything is all right out there. And that is not the case,” he said.