President Bola Tinubu on Monday led governors, former Heads of State, ministers and dignitaries in paying tribute to former President Muhammadu Buhari, as his family and associates marked the first anniversary of his passing in Abuja, with the president declaring that Buhari “gave everything he had to this country” without reservation.

Tinubu, represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, said Buhari’s life was “not a life this nation is capable of forgetting,” describing him as a man who had “entered the consciousness of Nigeria” and whose memory would outlive the living.

“He served with courage. He served with conviction and with a patriotism that never asked what the nation could return to him,” the president said.

Before delivering the president’s speech, Shettima recalled being personally directed by Tinubu to travel to London when news broke of Buhari’s illness, with the President instructing him to “ensure he lacks nothing.”

He described visiting the ailing former president in hospital and later being honoured with escorting his body back to Nigeria on behalf of Tinubu, calling it one of the greatest honours done to him by the president and the Buhari family.

Speaking in his personal capacity, Shettima said; “When you are in power, your friends know you. When you are out of power, you know your friends”.

Former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, told the gathering that Buhari and Tinubu shared a political alliance that worked both ways, saying the support Buhari received from Tinubu helped him emerge as president, just as Buhari later “gave his full support” to ensure Tinubu succeeded him in office.

“This is something for which we must give President Buhari credit. He stood firmly behind President Tinubu so that he could continue serving Nigeria,” Gowon said, while also congratulating Shettima on his nomination by President Tinubu as his running mate for the 2027 election.

Gowon also disclosed a personal debt of gratitude to the late president, recalling that ten years after leaving office, while resident in the United Kingdom, he found himself unable to pay his children’s school fees.

“I appealed to him, and he ensured that my family received assistance to pay those school fees. That was the kind of person he was. He cared for people,” Gowon said, adding that Buhari governed for all Nigerians and not just the North as some had believed.

Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu, who served as Governor of Kebbi State and Chairman of the Progressives Governors’ Forum PGF during Buhari’s tenure, said the late president gave his best to his family and the nation and remained committed to the unity of Nigeria.

“Buhari had prayed that his brother, Tinubu, succeed him, and Allah granted his wish,” Bagudu said.

Chairman of the Central Organising Committee and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, in his welcome address, said the anniversary was not merely about recalling Buhari’s passing but an occasion to reflect on a life of service.

He disclosed that the Buhari family was taking steps to establish the Muhammadu Buhari Foundation and Centre, alongside publications and other legacy initiatives to document his life and contributions to the nation.

Speaking on behalf of Governor Dikko Umar Radda of Katsina State, Buhari’s home state, Deputy Governor Faruk Lawal Jobe described the late president as belonging to “that rare generation of leaders whose personal integrity became synonymous with public service,” noting that his administration had pursued reforms in infrastructure, agriculture, social investment, anti-corruption and security.

Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State said Buhari never regarded the suffering of Borno as a distant national issue, noting that he visited the state severally even at great security risk during the peak of the insurgency.

Also present at the remembrance were the former First Lady, Hajia Aisha Buhari, the Ooni of Ife Emirs of Kazaure and Dutse, former Senate President Ahmad Lawan, former Plateau Governor Simon Lalong, former Minister of Defence, Badaru Abubakar, and governors including Sanwo-Olu of Lagos, Dapo Abiodun of Ogun, Abdulrazaq AbdulRahman of Kwara, Umar Namadi of Jigawa and Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State, several deputy governors, among other dignitaries. Katsina State’s Chief Host, Governor Radda, was represented by his deputy.

Former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo had reportedly prepared a video tribute for the occasion, but it could not be played due to what the Master of Ceremonies twice described as technical glitches.
By Omeiza Ajayi
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