I’m Better Off Now Than When I Was SGF – Babachir Lawal

Immediate past Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Babachir Lawal, says he is richer and wealthier now compared to when he served as a government official.

Speaking with newsmen in Abuja on Monday, the former SGF said that in spite of the situation that surrounded his leaving office, he had no regret.

In October 2017, Lawal was sacked as SGF by President Muhammadu Buhari after a presidential panel found him guilty of complicity in the scandalous N200million grass-cutting contract to clear “invasive plant species” in Yobe State.

But speaking to the press for the first time since he left office, the ex-SGF described his sack as a blessing in disguise.

“Let me shock you, before I came into government, I have been in business, I was a very successful businessman.

“I am a world renowned IT consultant and I have a very large farm, spanning over 1,000 hectares, which I abandoned to join governance.

“I was earning N930, 000 monthly as the SGF, now that I have returned to my farm and reactivated it after my sack, I now have 4,000 hectares under cultivation.

“Last year, I earned close to half a billion naira from my farm proceeds, I have a cattle ranch that I am developing gradually and I am back to IT consultancy, life is now good,” he said.

Lawal further stated that President Buhari deserves a second term, adding that his former boss has done so much for the country.

“I know very well that President Buhari has done very well to be re-elected over and over again, I wonder whether those still in doubt have not seen infrastructure, construction and other things he has been doing,” he said.

“I challenge those in doubt to come to Adamawa to see things for themselves.

“Before his coming into office, I could not go to my village, I could not go to my farm or to my Local Government, but the situation has changed.

“Now, I can drive to my house even at 2 a.m, I can visit the remotest corners of the village with my family. I go to my farm in the forest and come back safely.

“If you have never faced an unsecured situation, you may not appreciate what I am saying,” he said.

He further stated that his sack, opened his eyes to a lot of things that were hidden from him, adding that lots of people he helped in the past, were actually planning for his downfall.

“Everything that happened to a man is for his own good; my sack I would say, is rather a blessing in disguise.

“Let me tell you, nothing happened to me. Right from the beginning of the saga, I knew that the whole thing was fabricated and that was why I did not give any damn from the beginning.

“The reason some people don’t like me is because I am so confident of myself. Did you hear me defend myself that time, I didn’t do it and I will not do it because I know that they are fabricated,” Lawal added.