Aisha Buhari, the First Lady of Nigeria, has warned her husband she may not support him at the next election unless he shakes up his government.
Speaking to the BBC, Buhari alleged that her husband, Muhammadu, who became president last year, "does not know" most of the top officials who have been appointed.
She also claimed the government had been hijacked and that a "few people" were behind presidential appointments, giving posts to people who did not share the vision of the ruling All Progressives Congress.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Muhammadu Buhari came to power following a campaign in which he promised to tackle corruption and nepotism in government. "I belong to nobody and belong to everybody," he said during his inauguration.
However, his wife told the broadcaster: "The President does not know 45 out of 50, for example, of the people he appointed and I don't know them either, despite being his wife of 27 years."
She refused to identify those who she claimed had hijacked the government, but said: "You will know them if you watch television."
As to whether her husband was in charge: "That is left for the people to decide," she said.
Muhammadu Buhari has not yet decided whether he will stand in the next election in 2019, but his wife said she that unless things change, "I will not go out and campaign again and ask any woman to vote like I did before - I will never do it again".
The President reportedly sent a letter to the BBC's bureau in Abuja asking the agency not to air the interview.
-
Political cartoons for January 24Cartoons Saturday's political cartoons include 3D chess, political distractions, and more
-
Ryanair/SpaceX: could Musk really buy the airline?Talking Point Irish budget carrier has become embroiled in unlikely feud with the world’s wealthiest man
-
Claudette Colvin: teenage activist who paved the way for Rosa ParksIn The Spotlight Inspired by the example of 19th century abolitionists, 15-year-old Colvin refused to give up her seat on an Alabama bus
-
Panama and Canada are negotiating over a crucial copper mineIn the Spotlight Panama is set to make a final decision on the mine this summer
-
Why Greenland’s natural resources are nearly impossible to mineThe Explainer The country’s natural landscape makes the task extremely difficult
-
Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
-
How Bulgaria’s government fell amid mass protestsThe Explainer The country’s prime minister resigned as part of the fallout
-
Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
-
Brazil’s Bolsonaro behind bars after appeals run outSpeed Read He will serve 27 years in prison
-
Americans traveling abroad face renewed criticism in the Trump eraThe Explainer Some of Trump’s behavior has Americans being questioned
