Buhari’s body departs London for hometown, Daura

The remains of Nigeria’s former president, Muhammadu Buhari, have departed London for his hometown of Daura, Katsina State, ahead of his state burial.

Buhari, who passed away on Sunday, July 13, 2025, in a London hospital at the age of 82 after a prolonged illness, is being flown home aboard a Nigerian Air Force aircraft.

Among top government officials accompanying his body were Vice President Kashim Shettima and the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila. President Bola Tinubu is expected to receive the late leader’s remains upon arrival in Katsina by noon on Tuesday.

In Buhari’s honour, the Federal Government has declared Tuesday, July 15, 2025, a public holiday to mark his state burial in Daura, his native agrarian community in Nigeria’s North-West region.

Buhari, fondly called ‘Baba Buhari’ in northern Nigeria, was a towering figure in the country’s politics, known for his straight-laced posture and stern reputation. He first served as Nigeria’s military head of state from January 1984 to August 1985 before returning to politics with an unrelenting ambition to lead the country democratically.

Following three unsuccessful presidential bids in 2003, 2007, and 2011 — each time amassing a consistent 12 million votes — Buhari eventually emerged victorious in 2015. His merger of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) with Tinubu’s Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), alongside splinters from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), gave birth to the All Progressives Congress (APC) and altered Nigeria’s political landscape.

His 2015 election victory over the then-incumbent Goodluck Jonathan was a historic moment, marking the first time in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic that an opposition candidate would defeat a sitting president. Buhari, alongside Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, served two terms in office before handing over power to Bola Tinubu and Kashim Shettima on May 29, 2023.

Although his government was defined by an aggressive anti-corruption campaign, it was not without controversies. Allegations of mismanagement and unchecked conduct among his appointees trailed his tenure, a matter his spokesperson, Garba Shehu, and loyalists persistently defended against.

As Nigeria prepares to lay to rest one of its most influential modern political figures, the nation reflects on a legacy marked by both admiration and debate — a leader whose influence shaped a significant chapter in the country’s democratic history.