Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
Four days after he lost his Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, to coronavirus (COVID-19), President Muhammadu has against lost another member of staff, this time a personal bodyguard, who has reportedly died of diabetes.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media on Publicity, Garba Shehu, said in a statement on Tuesday that Warrant Officer Lawal Mato, who passed away on Tuesday, had been battling with the disease for three years.
The President described the officer, who had been working with him for many years before he won the 2015 elections, as “very thorough, trustworthy and dependable soldier who carried out his duty with diligence and focus.”
President Buhari prayed that God will ease his passage to paradise and grant his family, government and people of Jigawa State the fortitude to bear the loss.
Mato was part of a team that former President Umaru Musa Yar’adua restored to President Buhari as personal security and he had been off-full duty for three years, treating his illness.