The Presidency said the Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari, has died on Friday, April 17th, 2020 at the age of 81.

The Senior Special Assistant to President Buhari on Media and Publicity, Mr. Garba Shehu, said the Kyari died of coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Announcing Kyari’s death via his official Twitter handle, @GarShehu, Shehu tweeted,

The Presidency regrets to announce the passage of the Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari.

The deceased had tested positive to the ravaging COVID-19, and had been receiving treatment. But he died on Friday, April 17, 2020.

Shehu said the Presidency would announce funeral arrangements for the deceased soon.

The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, also tweeted through his official Twitter handle, @FemAdesina,

Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari, passes on. May God rest his soul. Amen. Funeral arrangements to be announced soon.

Kyari had tested positive for the coronavirus in March after returning from travel that took him to Germany and Egypt.

Doctors who treated Kyari had possession of his medical records which they received from Wellington Hospital, St John’s Wood, London. His medical records indicated that the Chief of Staff had some other underlying medical conditions that could hamper his rate of survival from COVID-19.

The Wellington Hospital, located in North London, is the largest independent hospital in the United Kingdom.

Kyari, in a letter on Sunday, March 29th, had said he was moved to Lagos on an air ambulance to undergo additional tests and observation, adding that he made the decision based on medical advice as a precautionary measure.

Furthermore, he stated that he made his personal arrangements for his medical treatment, to avoid further burdening the public healthcare system, which already faced enormous pressure.

However, the Federal Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, refused to reveal where Kyari was being treated.

The Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, later said he did not know Kyari’s location, thereby triggering rumours that the President’s aide was not quarantined in any isolation centre.

Responding to a question during a recent Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 briefing in Abuja, the health minister said the President’s chief of staff’s location was not important, adding that Kyari had a right to privacy.

Reacting to the news of Kyari’s demise, the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus, described the death as shocking.

He revealed that he had prayed for the recovery of the late chief of staff, adding that his death was shocking.

He said,

This is shocking. I’m sad to hear this bad news. Why now? I wish to console with the President, members of his cabinet, the family members of Kyari and all his associates.

The death is a reminder to all of us that whatever we are today, it is by the grace of God. He is the one that owns us and can call us at home at any time. Once more, I pray for the repose of the soul of the distinguished Nigerian.

Justin Nwosu

Justin Nwosu is the founder and publisher of Flavision. His core interest is in writing unbiased news about Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. He’s a strong adherent of investigative journalism, with a bent on exposing corruption, abuse of power and societal ills.