In the annals of Nigeria’s complex and often turbulent political history, few figures have loomed as large or as long as Muhammadu Buhari. Born on December 17, 1942, in Daura, Katsina State, Buhari’s journey from the dusty, arid plains of northern Nigeria to the corridors of power in both military and civilian dispensations remains one of the most remarkable stories of public service in post-independence Africa.
Yet, as with all mortals, the story ends where it began, in helplessness. He came into this world vulnerable, dependent, wrapped in the soft helplessness of infancy; and today, as he departed it, he did so wrapped once again, this time by the silence and stillness of death, helpless before the finality that conquers even the strongest.
According to available records, the late Buhari was born into a Fulani Muslim family, young Buhari showed early signs of discipline and purpose. He attended Katsina Provincial Secondary School before joining the Nigerian Military Training College in 1962. His military education later took him to Mons Officer Cadet School in the United Kingdom, and eventually to the United States and India for advanced training.
Buhari quickly rose through the ranks, demonstrating commitment, loyalty, and a stoic sense of duty. He served as a military governor of the then North-Eastern State under General Murtala Mohammed in 1975, following the overthrow of General Yakubu Gowon. When General Olusegun Obasanjo succeeded Murtala Mohammed after his assassination in 1976, Buhari was appointed Federal Commissioner (Minister) for Petroleum and Natural Resources, a powerful and sensitive position in a country heavily dependent on oil revenue.
It was during this time that he also became the first Chairman of the newly created Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), shaping policies that still influence Nigeria’s petroleum industry today.
Due to alleged economic mismanagement and widespread corruption, which led to a military coup on December 31, 1983, General Muhammadu Buhari emerged as Head of State after toppling the civilian government of President Shehu Shagari. His reign was brief but defined by strict discipline, economic austerity, and an iron-fisted war against indiscipline and corruption.
Under Buhari, Nigerians were introduced to the infamous “War Against Indiscipline” (WAI). Queues became orderly. Public officials were monitored. Street trading was curtailed. But these measures came at a cost-media repression, disregard for human rights, mass detentions without trial, and public flogging became a part of national life.
In August 1985, Buhari himself was overthrown in a palace coup led by his then Chief of Army Staff, General Ibrahim Babangida. He was detained for over three years, a period that deeply impacted his political worldview.
The return to civilian rule in 1999 gave Buhari a new mission, to rule Nigeria again, this time through the ballot. He contested presidential elections in 2003, 2007, and 2011 under various platforms, including the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC). Each time, he lost, and each time, he cried foul.
But perseverance has its rewards. In 2015, Buhari, now the face of the newly formed All Progressives Congress (APC), defeated incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan in a historic election. It marked the first time in Nigeria’s history that a sitting president was defeated in a general election. Buhari’s message of anti-corruption, security, and economic reform resonated with the electorate.
He was re-elected in 2019, serving until 2023. His presidency was a mixed bag. He took significant strides in infrastructure, agricultural development, and social investment programs. But he also faced mounting criticism over insecurity, sluggish economic growth, ethnic polarization, and a perception of aloofness and inaccessibility. His government’s human rights record remained controversial, especially regarding the #EndSARS protests of 2020 and the handling of dissent.
Buhari’s public life was filled with paradoxes. A man celebrated for integrity, yet surrounded by allegations of selective anti-corruption. A former dictator who embraced democracy, yet struggled with democratic openness. A nationalist, yet often accused of ethno-regional favoritism. To his admirers, he was Nigeria’s most honest leader, disciplined, austere, and incorruptible. To his critics, he was a symbol of unyielding conservatism and administrative inertia.
Still, it cannot be denied: Muhammadu Buhari achieved what many only dream of. He ruled Nigeria twice, once as a military ruler and again as a democratically elected President. He left a legacy of service, controversial, incomplete, yet significant.
Like all men, Buhari’s body eventually grew weary. In his later years, he visibly aged under the weight of leadership and health challenges. The once resolute general now shuffled slowly, spoke sparingly, and seemed more reflective. After leaving office in 2023, he retired to Daura, his hometown, occasionally making statements but largely retreating from public view.
When death finally came, it was not unexpected, but it was final. His mortal frame, once adorned in khaki and agbada, bowed one last time. He who had held the nation in his grip, who had sat in meetings deciding fates, wars, budgets, and policies, was now still. Silent. Helpless once again.
From Daura to Dodan Barracks, from the Petroleum Ministry to the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, Muhammadu Buhari traversed the peaks of Nigeria’s power structure and architecture. He was a child of destiny of sort, a man of discipline, and a symbol of a generation of leaders forged in the crucible of military service.
In death, Buhari joins the pantheon of Nigeria’s most consequential figures. He came into the world wrapped in helplessness and returned to it the same, a sobering reminder that no matter how high we climb, mortality is the great equalizer.
Muhammadu Buhari lived a life of purpose. And in the end, he returned to dust, not as a president, not as a general, but as a man.
Written By Enyinnaya Appolos, journalist and opinion writer.
