NIGERIAN PRESIDENT’S CHIEF OF STAFF DIES FROM CORONAVIRUS
The
Nigerian president’s chief of staff, Abba Kyari, died on Friday after
contracting the new coronavirus, two presidency spokesmen said on Twitter.
Kyari, who
was in his 70s and had underlying health problems including diabetes, was the
top official aide to 77-year-old President Muhammadu Buhari and one of the most
powerful men in the country.
“The
Presidency regrets to announce the passage of the Chief of Staff to the
President, Mallam Abba Kyari,” said presidency spokesman Garba Shehu in a
tweet, using an honorific title for Kyari.
“The
deceased had tested positive to the ravaging COVID-19, and had been receiving
treatment. But he died on Friday, April 17, 2020,” he said in a second post on
Twitter.
Spokesman
Femi Adesina also confirmed the death.
Kyari’s
was the highest profile death due to the disease in the West African country,
which has 493 confirmed cases and 17 deaths, according to the Nigeria Centre
for Disease Control.
Kyari
acted as the gatekeeper to Buhari. He travelled to Germany in early March with
a delegation of other Nigerian officials for meetings with Siemens AG. He
attended meetings with senior government officials upon his return to Nigeria.
