The Director General, Nigeria Textile and Garment Manufacturers Association (NTGMA), Alhaji Hamma Kwajaffa, has described the death of Chief of Staff to the President of the country, Mallam Abba Kyari, as a rude shock, asking President Muhammadu Buhari, entire members of government and family of the late presidential top aide to take heart.
Speaking in an interview with The DEFENDER in Lagos, the NTGMA DG recalled the love of Kyari for the cotton-textile-garment sector which, he said, informed the late Chief of Staff’s suggestions to the President through the Federal Executive Council that led to favourable actions of Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, in that direction and which, he said, is now paying off today as cotton has started coming out from the farm centres for the growth of the textile and garment sector.
Love him or hate him, Abba Kyari was a person that was loyal to his boss, Kwajaffa said.
In the condolence he said, “We actually commiserate and really sympathise with government, especially Mr. President and the family of late Mallam Abba Kyari. The man, love him or hate him, he was a person that was loyal to his boss. And he had made a lot of suggestions that were useful for the growth and development of Nigeria.
“For instance, the issue of cotton-textile-garment definitely emanated from the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President, then to the Federal Executive Council and from there the CBN, Central Bank of Nigeria picked it up.
“It is something that will definitely uplift the cotton value chain. It has started, cotton has started coming out and it will really impact seriously on the cotton value chain from field to fashion.
“So, we commend him even in death for what he did. We appreciate what the government has done and we really sympathise over the loss from the pandemic. Nobody is safe and nobody knows what will happen next but we pray it ends on time and we sympathise with the government and the family,” he said.
