•When Power Fades, Legacy Speaks
He rose in uniforms and fell into history, twice. First, as a stern military head of state whose iron discipline became both a shield and a siege. Nigeria feared his austerity, admired his integrity and even then, a flicker of moral clarity glimmered in his resolve to punish corruption. We remember the Buhari of 1983. Unbending, austere, and sure.
But morals don’t sustain nations alone. After stepping down in 1985, he spent years trying for reasons beyond office, to lead again. Three failed presidential bids. Each one a scripture of hope, of persistence. Then, in 2015, the fourth try broke the mold. He unseated an incumbent for the first time in Nigeria’s history. That victory was not just political, it was spiritual. Many of us saw a man of principle delivering change. I was among them, awed by his integrity, decency, and patriotism.
His Famous Inaugural Quote “2015”
“I belong to everybody, and I belong to nobody.”
This is one of the most iconic lines in Nigeria’s democratic history. It captured his desire to be a president beyond partisanship, even though critics later questioned if he upheld it.
He built his campaigns on fighting corruption, jailing looters, and recovering stolen wealth. This shaped how millions voted for him and how they later judged him.
His Role in Boko Haram Fight and Chibok girls.
Under his leadership, some kidnapped girls were returned and military morale rose at least early on.
Buhari regained some international respect for Nigeria early in his term,Obama invited him to the White House in 2015, a rare gesture for an African leader.
His silence during national tragedies e.g. Lekki Toll Gate, farmers’ killings, ASUU strikes became its own chapter. His silence was loud and worth noting in contrast to his past decisiveness as a general.
His trademark silence on pressing national issues, coupled with a conspicuously delayed formation of his cabinet long after assuming office, earned him the moniker “Baba Go Slow,”a nickname that reflected both public impatience and the quiet, calculating pace of a man who governed on his own terms.
Yet the pages that follow his presidency tell a different story. Economic hardship clenched the nation. Inflation, broken promises, souls and stomachs emptied as expectations crashed. His apology on the BBC ”rashin iya aiki”.
An admission of weakness. That moment of humility humbled even his harshest critics. It reminded us all that even grit can crack under age and sickness, that even giants can falter.Echoed across the globe. In that moment, a warrior admitted he had fallen short. I cried then. I cried again at his passing. The tears were for the man who tried, who believed, and who finally apologized.
It’s sad that some celebrated his death not from cruelty, but from hunger and lost hope. So many celebrated his passing mostly GenZs misled by frustration because of Twitter Ban,Lekki toll gate shooting/End SARS and Naira scarcity.
EndSARS happened which is unforgivable, Nigerians have not healed from that because healing comes from justice.
But let me be clear. No conscious, sane person would rejoice at his death. Hunger and desperation drove the so-called celebrations,not principle. None of our elders would rejoice at this loss. Buhari’s death revealed more than grief, it revealed unmet promises and the impatience of a populace. Still, mourning or celebration, both spring from his unfinished legacy. He knew legacy matters. Aisha spoke of his vow to ask Nigerians’ forgiveness before he died. He did, deeply and sincerely. That apology wasn’t a parting formality, it was a benediction, a plea for grace. Many of us have forgiven him. Pray that Nigeria forgives too. The nation is bigger than humans. It can rise again.
What will survive his time in power? Not policies or platforms but the shape of his character. A man who had authority, who chased redemption, who stumbled, but who humbled himself. Leaders of tomorrow, note this. You may stand at podiums and hold ranks. But what lingers is how you led and how you left.
He came with the promise of discipline, and left us with a lesson in disillusionment.
Power gave him a second chance but history gave him a second judgment.
He fought corruption with a loud voice which earned him the moniker “Mai Gaskiya”but was silent when hunger corrupted the stomachs of millions.
From the boots of a general to the ballot of a president, Buhari walked a path few dared, but many judged.
He said he belonged to nobody, yet too often, it felt like he belonged to silence.
His victory in 2015 was not just political it was poetic justice to a generation that had longed for a man of principle.
In trying to fight Nigeria’s enemies, he sometimes forgot to fight its suffering.
History is rarely fair in real-time, but it is brutally honest in hindsight.
He gave us hope, and then he asked for forgiveness. Few leaders manage both.
Buhari was a paradox deeply admired, deeply criticized, but never easily ignored. The general who once ruled by decree died in a democracy shaped by dissent.
His silence in power may have hurt him more than any opposition ever did.
Buhari’s legacy is not a straight line it is a graph of highs, lows, and lessons. When the dust of politics settles, what remains is how you made people feel hopeful or abandoned.
He held office twice, but history will decide whether he ever truly held the nation’s heart.
Buhari lived to 82. That in itself is rare. Those who cheered his passing may never reach such years or power. Only twelve Nigerians have ever assumed the presidency. He had both uniform and mandate. He shaped history, for better and worse. And now he has passed into it. May Allah forgive his missteps, reward his service, and grant him *al janna firdaws*. May we who remain learn the value of hope, the burden of promises, and the power of apology.
The uniform has been folded,the voice has been stilled. But Nigeria’s story continues and it’s up to us to make sure his life, in its strength and its frailty, becomes a lesson worth passing on. He may rest in peace, but his sincerity will wake us again.
If tomorrow’s leaders learned from his regrets, his legacy would live even longer than his absence. To today’s would-be leaders, you chase legacy. But remember, it’s not gifts or memorandums that echo. It’s your character your accountability, your courage to face your failures, your capacity to apologize.
His journey from fortress to ballot box, from promised savior to remorseful elder is a caution and a compass. The Nigeria he served in uniform and suit waits to remember him as a man of principle, not just policy.
May Allah forgive him. May his story teach us that even a flawed presidency can reflect a beautiful soul. May ours do better.
Farewell Sai Baba Farewell Mai Gaskiya Farewell Baba go slow.
The post Muhammadu Buhari: Power gave him a second chance, history gave him a second judgment, by Stephanie Shaakaa appeared first on Vanguard News.
