The decision of Aisha Buhari, wife of the Nigerian president, to file a legal action against Ayodele Fayose, governor of Ekiti State, has been generating controversy based on the fact that Fayose enjoys immunity.
The president’s wife sued the governor after he refused to retract his allegations that she was indicted in the Halliburton scam.
She had initially given Fayose a five-day ultimatum to apologise, but the governor stood his grounds, insisting that he had evidence to substantiate his claim.
He even challenged her to visit the US if she was sure that she was not afraid of being arrested.
Buhari’s wife is currently in the country, where she is expected to spend a full week.
Commenting on the legal battle with Fayose during an interview with VOA, the president’s wife said she had the right to take him to court because her office is higher than that of the governor.
“I never chose myself for this post, but God chose it for me… I took him (Fayose) to court because my seat supersedes his,” she said.
“I have never abused him; I don’t even know him as a person. How can he be accusing me of what I have no idea of? I won’t let this go.”
Tracing the origin of the issue to the electioneering period, the president’s wife said it was not only Fayose who was abusing her, but added that while others “kept quiet” after the election, the governor continued.
She said it was God who made it possible for her husband to win the election.
“All these started during the campaign period. He was not the only who was abusing me, others did that, but after the election, which Allah made us to win, and they to lose, everybody kept quiet, but Fayose kept on abusing people and eventually he started abusing me too,” she said.
“I don’t know those places and people he mentioned.”
