By Festus Keyamo
The passing of late President Muhammadu Buhari has evoked different emotions and reactions from the length and breadth of Nigeria and even beyond. This is expectedly so because he was one of only two persons in the history of our country who had the opportunity to govern this country twice – first as Military Head of State and later as a democratically-elected President whose actions and policies shaped this country in many respects that affected and defined the lives and destinies of millions of people.
However, one consensus in the midst of these different emotions, opinions and reactions from friends, foes and associates alike is that President Muhammadu Buhari served this country completely unblemished. Whether you choose to judge him harshly or kindly, the general consensus is that he embodied honesty and integrity in public office.
He was a President who led by example, who walked the talk, who inspired integrity, uncompromising transparency and accountability in public office. He was a moral and ethical compass in governance. He served this country with a good conscience, the fear of God and extraordinary discipline.
In my immediate reaction after his death, I wrote that “they don’t make them like him anymore; not given to the primitive acquisition of unearned wealth, frugal in living, austere in lifestyle, not inclined to showboating and incredibly honest to the core”.
The notion of his transparency and honesty was not just a flash in a pan; he was trusted and tested over time because he served at different levels and in different capacities. He was a Platoon Commander, a Commanding Officer, a Brigade Commander, a General Officer Commanding (GOC), a Governor of the old North Eastern Region, a Federal Commissioner, a Federal Minister, Chairman of the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF), Military Head of State and finally democratic President. Yet, he was NEVER found wanting for once.
I was privileged to serve him in different capacities and I can attest to his rear discipline. I was his Campaign Spokesperson in the 2019 Presidential Elections and then his Minister of State (In the Ministry of Niger-Delta Affairs and later, Ministry of Labour and Employment).
From these vantage positions, I saw that he was a fierce stickler for hierarchical order and discipline. The Buhari I know will NEVER, EVER sacrifice hierarchical order and discipline on the altar of personal relationships, family ties or friendships. Once a subordinate can no longer work with a superior, no matter how close that subordinate was
to President Buhari, the subordinate would be sacrificed in order for Government to function smoothly. There are several examples that I know you all remember and as Minister of State, I enjoyed that support from him.
Only very few people in history have the grace and opportunity to reinvent themselves at the highest level and to recraft their own legacies.
From the image of a no-nonsense and stern military dictator of the 1980’s who truncated democracy and rode roughshod over the Rule of Law, to the image of a frustrated serial election loser, and then to the hero and symbol of Change and Hope that the nation chose to defeat a behemoth ruling party and sitting President in 2015 for the first time in our history and finally to the legacy of a sitting President who presided over a peaceful, free and fair democratic process that produced his successor in office and peacefully handed over power – this is the stuff of which thrilling, fictional movies are made.
That is why for millions of people he was an enigma in life and an enigma in death. He oscillated from one perception to the other extreme perception that was diametrically different from the first.
At the end, we can conveniently say that President Muhammadu Buhari ticked all the boxes that we can use to qualify a quintessential patriot, a fine officer and an exceptional Statesman.
He came, he fought and he conquered. He has finished the course and run a good race.
Goodbye Mai Gaskiya!
OLOROGUN FESTUS KEYAMO, SAN, CON, FCIArb (UK) Honourable Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development. Thursday, July 17, 2025