Nana Buhari, daughter of the late former President Muhammadu Buhari, has offered a heartfelt defence of her father’s legacy, saying many Nigerians never truly knew the man behind the public image.

Nana Buhari, the daughter of the late former President Muhammadu Buhari, who died on Sunday in a London hospital, has spoken out in defence of her father’s legacy.

THE HOPE NEWS that Mr Buhari was laid to rest on Tuesday in his hometown of Daura, Katsina State, with several political dignitaries and prominent individuals in attendance.

As tributes poured in from global leaders, politicians, and notable figures, some Nigerians took to social media to criticise the late president, referencing controversial policies from his time in office.

In a BBC Pidgin interview posted on Facebook on Thursday, Ms Nana said Nigerians largely misunderstood her father.

She said, “What I’d like to tell Nigerians is that those who didn’t know my father or had bad or negative thoughts about him should understand that he was not what they thought he was.

“He was a very kind person and did his best for Nigeria. He loved Nigerians and was truly patriotic.

Happy childhood

Ms Nana recalled one of the happiest moments she and her siblings shared with the late president.

She described her father as a kind-hearted, humorous, easy-going, and patriotic man who genuinely had the nation’s best interests at heart, despite facing public criticism.

“I remembered a happy childhood with my father, mainly when my younger sister, Safina, and I discussed hail. After overhearing our conversation, we had never seen rain fall as hailstones before, and my father went into the kitchen. He scraped some ice and started throwing it at us from behind. We shouted because we thought the ice was coming from the sky.

“What people didn’t know about my father was that he was straightforward, easy-going, extremely funny, loved to give advice, and hardly said anything bad about any food someone cooked for him. Whatever food you gave him, if it didn’t taste nice, he would put the plate aside without complaining or blaming the cooking”, she added.

Other tributes

Aside from the late president’s daughter, several politicians and dignitaries who met him described him as a good man with a genuine interest in the nation’s development.

Former Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun, who regarded Mr Buhari, who died at 82, as a close friend, praised his unwavering dedication to national discipline as a Military Head of State and a democratically elected president.

The two-term senator added that Mr Buhari worked consistently to promote a more orderly and progressive Nigeria, where the rights of the poor and vulnerable were safeguarded.

“His vision for infrastructure development remains unparalleled. He ran the most ambitious and extensive social intervention policy designed to take the poorest of the poor out of the scourge of poverty.

“‘Nigerians will miss me,’+kze79x’ he said repeatedly after office. As with all governments, Buhari’s immense contributions to Nigeria would be more appreciated as Nigerians experience successive governments”, Mr Amosun added.

Also, a prominent chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ayiri Emami, commended the late president for his unwavering dedication to democratic principles. 

He noted that, throughout his tenure, the late leader consistently refrained from meddling in state-level political affairs.