· Blames late ex-president’s inner circle for administration’s failures
James Adamu
Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai has condemned the recent launch of a book on late President Muhammadu Buhari, alleging that the event is distorting his legacy and reviving bitter factional politics.
This came after a recent book launch of late President Buhari’s biography titled, ‘From Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari’, held on Monday at the State House conference centre, Abuja.
El-Rufai, on Wednesday in a statement titled “Let President Muhammadu Buhari Rest in Peace,” argued that the composition of the book launch revealed “the same factional lines that existed during Buhari’s lifetime.”
He observed that one camp was “prominently represented, while others equally close to the late president were excluded.”
“This selective engagement raises concerns about whether Buhari’s legacy is now being shaped to serve narrow interests rather than historical truth,” El-Rufai stated.
The former governor went further to place the blame for the perceived shortcomings of the Buhari administration on the president’s inner circle.
He asserted that while Buhari was a man of personal integrity, “much of his administration’s shortcomings stemmed from the actions and failures of a powerful inner circle—relatives, advisers, and officials who did not always share his commitment to integrity and public service.”
El-Rufai also took aim at attendees of the event, describing as “more troubling” the “presence of long time critics of Buhari, some of whom now hold high office, delivering glowing, but clearly faked tributes.”
He suggested these individuals, who once blamed Buhari for national challenges, are now attempting to “revise history, perhaps to deflect responsibility for present failures.”
The book in question, Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari, has sparked controversy with its revelations. El-Rufai noted he has not yet read it but warned that “explaining the thoughts and motivations of a complex leader through selective anecdotes risks distorting, rather than preserving, his legacy.”
He concluded with a plea to “all Nigerians, admirers and critics alike—let President Muhammadu Buhari rest in peace,” urging that history judge him “without opportunism or revisionism.”
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