In an interview with Seun Okinbaloye on the Mic on Podcast on Sunday, Dalung explained his frustrations with the direction of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and his eventual departure from the party in 2023.
Solomon Dalung, former Minister of Youth and Sports Development, has described Muhammadu Buhari as a “stranger in his own government,” claiming that the former president was used and discarded by those around him.
In an interview with Seun Okinbaloye on the Mic on Podcast on Sunday, Dalung explained his frustrations with the direction of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and his eventual departure from the party in 2023.
Dalung stated that his resignation was driven by a disagreement over the political manoeuvring within the APC, particularly the issue of Mai Mala Buni, who served as both the sitting Governor of Yobe State and the National Chairman of the party.
Dalung said he repeatedly tried to raise constitutional concerns with Buhari, but his efforts appeared to be ignored.
"I protested against it. I tried to reach the then-president about it, saying it was wrong, but it seems to have fallen on deaf ears. So I told myself that you can't fight for the truth and still continue to compromise it. So I resigned my membership and left," Dalung said.
Reflecting on the early days of the APC, Dalung noted that the party was initially seen as a united force for progress in Nigeria.
However, once it gained power, it quickly became clear that the APC was a “House of Commons” — a collection of competing interests and factions that ultimately undermined its purpose.
He said, "Our common enemy was to eliminate the PDP and Jonathan. For me, it was about moving the country forward. But after we assumed power, these interests started manifesting in different forms, even within the government. I realised that we had actually deceived Nigerians. The APC was not truly for the people; it was about grabbing power."
"Yes, the Buhari campaign in 2015 was sponsored by Nigerians. Every kobo was spent, apart from the big politicians who donated aircrafts, which they also used for their campaigns. The common people trekked 40 kilometers to attend rallies. The poor people contributed their small savings.
"The peak of it was the 90-year-old woman in Kogi, who, when we went for the campaign, brought out her life savings of one million naira and donated it to the APC, thanking God that she was contributing to the new Nigeria, even if she may not live to see it,' he said.
Dalung explained that Buhari's charisma was needed at that point by the political elite to eliminate Jonathan.
"However, shortly after Buhari assumed power, this group of political elites emerged and hijacked the government."
According to him, "Buhari became a stranger in his own government, and I can say this with certainty. Buhari was a stranger in his own government. I can corroborate this because I visited the president in 2020, I went to his office and told him, "Mr. President, this isn't what we told Nigerians.
"I have a conscience. We campaigned and convinced Nigerians, and when I look at the level of investment the common people placed in our government, I see that we are now dealing with insecurity. When we came in, it was only the Northeast that was affected. By 2020, I told him it was no longer safe to travel from Abuja to Kaduna. I even said, "Mr. President, if you disbelieve what I am saying, please roll out a brigade of guards, and I will join you. We will drive from Abuja to Daura, and I promise you that if bandits don't attack us, I will go into exile.
"I briefed him about the security situation and the hardship people were facing, and to be fair to the president, he expressed surprise."
"He said that from my judgment, some of the things I said were things he had never heard before. But I was not surprised that this was happening because even when we were in government, similar things occurred. It was me who, at a Federal Executive Council meeting, informed him that DSS and EFCC operatives were in a standoff for three days, holding the entire environment hostage. The president didn’t know, and it was all over the media."
Dalung explained that there was an incident when the president was in Nigeria for three days, and during a Federal Executive Council meeting, he expected the issue to be on the agenda.
"It wasn't, so I had to raise it under AOB (Any Other Business). The president was visibly confused as he listened to me, and at the end of the meeting, we left without any closing prayer because he was angry. On my way to my office, I saw those two agencies directly under his control holding an entire community hostage for three days. Despite this, the president didn’t know.
"There was no security at his table. The National Security Adviser could not inform him. The so-called courtiers and veranda boys—none of them thought it wise to protect his image and integrity by informing him.," he said.
The former Minister said that there was a takeover of Buhari’s government under his watch.
"For me, Buhari's integrity was needed as a political tool to eliminate Jonathan and his government, but once that was achieved, the situation changed. If we were honest, after bringing Buhari into power, there should have been a consensus on how we would move the country forward, considering our individual images and integrity.
"But instead, there was internal and external warfare, with blame games and other distractions.
He said the power struggles within the corridors of power and the presidency were enough to tell the story.
He noted that those who overtook the government—the so-called cabals—really existed.
Dalung spoke about the cabal, saying the CPC didn’t succeed in establishing one. If it had, figures like Al-Makura, who was the only CPC governor, would have featured prominently.
"The most unfortunate thing that happened was that shortly after we took power, a group of people emerged from nowhere.
"These cabals were like bandits who laid an ambush immediately after the president was declared the winner. I was with him in his office, having gone to see him that very evening, but I was blocked from entering. This was the same place I had been the night before, until 2 a.m. I was blocked until I made some calls before I was allowed in. From that day, the cabal took over.
"Those who campaigned for Buhari were celebrating, but they abandoned the president, and these people, who understood power, took over and ran it for their own interests," Dalung added.