|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
📍 Daura, Katsina State —
Nigeria’s former President Muhammadu Buhari, who passed away at the age of 82 in a London clinic on July 13, was laid to rest on Tuesday 15th July in the courtyard of his private residence in Daura, his hometown in northern Nigeria.
🛬 Return and Reception His body was flown into Katsina State aboard a Nigerian Air Force jet and received by President Bola Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima, and other dignitaries at the Umaru Musa Yar’Adua International Airport. A full military honour guard and a 21-gun salute marked the solemn occasion.
🕌 Funeral Rites and Burial Islamic funeral prayers were held at Daura’s central mosque, attended by hundreds of mourners. Buhari’s body, draped in the national flag, was interred at 5:50 p.m. in a grave within his family compound. The flag was ceremonially removed and handed to his family before burial.
👥 Dignitaries in Attendance The funeral drew high-profile attendees, including:
- President Bola Tinubu
- Guinea-Bissau President Umaro Sissoco Embaló
- Former Vice Presidents Yemi Osinbajo and Atiku Abubakar
- Africa’s richest man Aliko Dangote
- Prime Minister of Niger Ali Lamine Zeine
- Former Niger President Mahamadou Issoufou
- Several Nigerian governors, ministers, and traditional rulers
📅 National Mourning President Tinubu declared seven days of national mourning, with flags flown at half-mast and Tuesday designated a public holiday to honour Buhari’s legacy.
🗣️ Tributes and Legacy Buhari, who served as Nigeria’s president from 2015 to 2023, was the first opposition candidate to defeat an incumbent. He previously ruled as a military head of state from 1983 to 1985.
Tributes highlighted his austerity, anti-corruption stance, and patriotism:
- Goodluck Jonathan praised his “selfless commitment”
- Gen Ibrahim Babangida, who ousted Buhari in 1985, called him “a moral compass”
Despite mixed reviews of his presidency, Buhari retained a loyal following, especially in northern Nigeria, where mourners gathered in large numbers to pay their final respects.
For further coverage, see reports from GhanaWeb, eNCA, Ripples Nigeria, Leadership News, and Reuters.
