SUNTV Global Channel | September 4, 2026
Retired Nigerian Army Major General Danjuma Hamisu Ali-Keffi has alleged that two influential members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who opposed President Bola Tinubu’s emergence as the party’s presidential candidate attempted to obtain confidential records concerning him from United States government agencies before the 2023 presidential election.
Ali-Keffi, a former General Officer Commanding the Nigerian Army’s 1 Division, made the allegation in an exclusive interview with SaharaReporters while recounting political developments surrounding the APC’s presidential primary.
According to the retired general, the information was disclosed to him by Modibbo Hamman-Tukur, a former Director of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), during the period leading up to the APC presidential primary.
Ali-Keffi said he was serving as Commander of Operation Service Wide at the time, an operation he described as focusing on terrorism financing and the structures of terrorist organisations.
He alleged that Hamman-Tukur informed him that two prominent APC figures opposed to Tinubu had gained unauthorised access to the NFIU director’s office and sent requests to United States government agencies seeking confidential information concerning Tinubu.
“Two prominent APC people who were against Tinubu entered illegally into the office of NFIU director and sent messages to the US government agencies requesting confidential records of Bola Ahmed Tinubu on those issues – terrorism financing,” Ali-Keffi said.
He further claimed that Hamman-Tukur became concerned about the development and later visited his office around 2am, after which the individuals allegedly involved realised he was there and left.
Ali-Keffi said a response from the United States authorities was subsequently received regarding the request, although he maintained that he did not know the contents of the records allegedly sought or supplied.
“I don’t know what the record is or related to current issues regarding his forfeiture and other issues, if I am not mistaken,” he said.
The retired general stressed that he was recounting what he had been told by the former NFIU director and did not personally establish what information was contained in any alleged US records.
He also did not claim that the records proved Tinubu had committed any wrongdoing.
Ali-Keffi alleged that NFIU officials connected to the matter were later dismissed and that the controversy subsequently became the subject of legal proceedings.
He further claimed that former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai was aware of the operation and some of the information allegedly received from the United States.
According to Ali-Keffi, El-Rufai and other influential figures had access to information concerning the matter but were opposed to using confidential material against Tinubu.
The retired general said the issue was significant because several powerful APC figures were simultaneously engaged in discussions over who should emerge as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2023 election.
Ali-Keffi recalled that he eventually voted for Tinubu in the presidential election, largely influenced by El-Rufai’s argument that political power should move from the North to the South in the interest of national unity.
He suggested that if the alleged documents had been made public at the time, they could have affected Tinubu’s chances of securing the APC presidential ticket.
Ali-Keffi also recounted an alleged conversation involving former Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Chairman Muhammad Nami and an unnamed influential minister who, according to him, was initially opposed to Tinubu’s emergence as the APC candidate.
He said Nami told him that while attending the United Nations General Assembly in New York, he visited the minister, who was reportedly close to then-President Muhammadu Buhari, to persuade him to support Tinubu.
According to Ali-Keffi, the minister warned that Tinubu would eventually target certain individuals if he became president.
Despite the warning, Nami allegedly argued that supporting a Southern candidate was necessary for national unity.
Ali-Keffi said the eventual support for Tinubu reflected broader political calculations within the APC ahead of the 2023 election.
However, the retired general said he has since become dissatisfied with the decision he made at the time.
“I regret actually voting for him,” Ali-Keffi said.
He also stated that he would not support the APC in the next election.
“I’m not going to vote APC next election,” he added.
Ali-Keffi’s claims come amid continuing political debates over the events and internal negotiations that preceded Tinubu’s emergence as the APC’s presidential candidate.
However, his account does not independently establish the contents of the alleged US records, whether they contained damaging information about Tinubu, or whether any such information influenced the APC’s presidential primary.
The allegation concerning the request for the records is based substantially on what Ali-Keffi said he was told by former NFIU Director Modibbo Hamman-Tukur.
SUNTV Global Channel will continue to bring you updates on major political developments and issues of national interest.
