Buhari's Daughter Speaks Out On His Father's Private Life: "He Knew Nigerians Were Disappointed"
- Halima Buhari said her late father knew many Nigerians were disappointed with his administration
- She revealed that Buhari privately grappled with the weight of leadership and difficult compromises
- She maintained that debates over Buhari’s legacy remained valid in a democratic society
FCT, Abuja - Halima Buhari, daughter of former President Muhammadu Buhari, has offered a rare and personal insight into the private life of her late fathe.
Halima revealed that he was fully aware of the disappointment and criticism expressed by many Nigerians during his time in office.
Source: Twitter
She made the disclosure on Wednesday, December 17, during the presentation of a book authored by former Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, according to a report by the Nigerian Tribune.
Buhari understood unmet expectations, Halima says
Speaking before an audience that included former ministers, ex-governors, traditional rulers and political party leaders, Halima said her father knew that many Nigerians who placed great hope in his leadership, particularly on security and economic recovery, felt let down by his administration.
She noted that Buhari often reflected on the weight of leadership and the difficulty of governing a complex country with competing demands and limited options.
“Behind every soundbite, there was a human being; sometimes tired, sometimes determined, sometimes frustrated, always painfully aware that his decisions impacted millions of lives.
“That human being was our father. I saw a side of him that never appeared on television and was rarely captured in print," she said.
Halima: ‘At home, he was simply Baba’
Halima described the former president as a deeply reserved man who listened more than he spoke and carried the nation’s worries quietly.
“I saw the man who would sit quietly, listening more than he spoke. The man who worried about the security of ordinary people. The man who agonised over the gap between what was promised and what was possible,” she said.
She stressed that leadership, especially in Nigeria, is rarely straightforward and often involves painful trade-offs and imperfect decisions.
“Leadership, especially in a country as complex as Nigeria, is never as straightforward as it looks from the outside. It involves trade-offs, compromises, and very often, imperfect choices," Halima said.
According to her, Buhari was neither insulated from public criticism nor dismissive of opposing views.
“My father was not unaware of the criticism levelled against him. He knew that many Nigerians felt that more would have been done or done differently,” she said.
Legacy debate remains valid, Halima insists
Halima emphasised that the event was not intended to rewrite or sanitise her father’s legacy, noting that public debate over his years in office remains a vital part of democratic engagement.
Source: Twitter
“Our presence here today is not to rewrite that history or to insist on a single interpretation of his years in office. Nigerians will continue to debate his legacy as they should in a vibrant democracy," she said.
She added that differing accounts of Buhari’s presidency would continue to emerge over time.
“There will be books that praise, books that criticise, and books that will try to document,” she said.
Buhari's daughter mentions official document with forged signature
Previously, Legit.ng reported that Fatima Buhari, the daughter of the immediate past President Muhammadu Buhari, has disclosed that the signature of her father was forged on an official document during his time in office.
The former president's daughter made the revelation while giving her own account of the administration of the late Buhari in the biography "From Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari", a biography written by Charles Omole.
Source: Legit.ng
