Some top aides of President Muhammadu Buhari have been denied access into the Presidential Villa in Abuja, after returning from the burial of the late Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari, yesterday.

The affected aides include State House Chief Protocol Officer, Ambassador Lawal Kazaure, Special Assistant to the President, Yusuf Sabiu, a nephew to the President, Musa Haro Daura, and Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Garba Shehu.

Others are National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, Director-General of National Intelligence Agency, Mr. Ahmad Rufai, and Personal Assistant on New Media to President Buhari, Bashir Ahmed, among others.

The burial at Gudu Cemetery, Abuja, was attended by hundreds of mourners, who failed to observe social distancing, with most of them not wearing their face masks appropriately.

This development violated the social distancing rule put in place by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and exposed attendees, including the Presidential aides to the risk of contracting the highly contagious and deadly disease, which claimed Kyari’s life.

•Excerpted from a Guardian report.