Nura Muhammad Mahe, a grandson of Nigeria’s former President Shehu Shagari, has publicly accused the late former President Muhammadu Buhari of showing little respect for his grandfather, both in life and in death.
In a strongly worded statement issued on Wednesday, Mahe expressed deep disappointment over what he described as Buhari’s failure to honour Shagari appropriately when he passed away in 2018.
According to Hobnob News, Mahe contrasted the treatment of the two former presidents, commending current President Bola Tinubu for what he called “a show of honour and statesmanship” in organising a full state burial for Buhari, who died on Sunday and was laid to rest with full military honours in Daura on Tuesday.
He described President Tinubu’s personal attendance at the funeral as “a symbol of national unity and dignity,” while lamenting that Shagari was not accorded the same level of respect under Buhari’s administration.
“This is in stark contrast to how the late President Shehu Shagari was treated during the administration of Muhammadu Buhari,” Mahe stated.
He further recalled that when Shagari died in December 2018, Buhari, who was in the country at the time, did not attend the funeral nor grant a state burial. Instead, a government delegation led by then Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, was sent to represent him.
“Boss Mustapha, notably a non-Muslim, was sent to represent a sitting President at the funeral of a former President in a deeply religious northern community,” Mahe said, implying that the gesture was not only inappropriate but culturally insensitive.
Mahe described the incident as a “slight” to his grandfather’s legacy, stressing that as Nigeria’s first democratically elected Executive President, Shehu Shagari deserved more recognition and national honour.
The statement has stirred reactions online, with many Nigerians reflecting on how the nation remembers and honours its past leaders.
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