By Abiola Olawale
Eminent Scholar-Diplomat, former Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister, and erstwhile United Nations Under-Secretary-General, Professor Ibrahim Agboola Gambari, has commended Garba Shehu, former Senior Special Assistant to the immediate past President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari for his latest book, “According to the President: Lessons from a Presidential Spokesperson’s Experience.”
Speaking at the unveiling on July 9, 2025, at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja, Gambari, who also served as Chief of Staff to Buhari during the latter’s second term, said the book chronicles Shehu’s tenure as Buhari’s SSA and offers a rare behind-the-scenes account of the former president’s eight-year administration.
Gambari, founder/Chairman of Savannah Centre for Diplomacy, Democracy & Development, who was the Chief Presenter at the event, while delivering a goodwill message, described the book as a vital contribution to understanding Buhari’s presidency.
He highlighted Shehu’s ability to navigate “the perception problem and the tyranny of high expectations” that defined former President Buhari’s tenure, emphasizing the memoir’s academic and policy relevance. “
Gambari also said the book illuminates key policy thrusts that underscored Buhari’s transformative legacy, highlighting the profound impact which the Social Investment Program (SIP) had on the vulnerables, including “the doorstep of the poor” with consequential improvement in the quality of life for millions of citizens.
Prof Gambari who commended the revolutionary strides in fiscal transparency through intervention mechanisms such as the Treasury Single Account (TSA), Bank Verification Number (BVN), Tax Identification Number (TIN), Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPS), the Whistle Blower policy, and the National Identity Number (NIN) maintainedcthat the policies complemented the concerted efforts to strengthen the nation’s security and enhance Nigeria’s stature abroad as well as build Africa’s diplomatic institutions and development agencies.
He said: “The book illuminates key policy thrusts that underscore President Buhari’s transformative legacy. The unprecedented transformation of Nigeria’s infrastructure.
“The profound societal impact of the first-of-its-kind Social Investment Program (SIP), which sought to reach “the doorstep of the poor” and improve the quality of life for millions of citizens.
“Revolutionary strides in fiscal transparency through mechanisms such as the Treasury Single Account (TSA), Bank Verification Number (BVN), Tax Identification Number (TIN), Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPS), the Whistle Blower policy, and the National Identity Number (NIN).”
