Former President Muhammadu Buhari was laid to rest Tuesday evening in the quiet compound of his Daura residence, beneath the shade of trees where he used to relax with his visitors. The burial took place at 5:30 pm, followed by a 21-gun salute fired in three-volley sequences by security personnel dressed in ceremonial green and red uniforms.
The former president’s body arrived earlier at Umaru Musa Yar’Adua International Airport in Katsina aboard a Nigerian Air Force jet at 2:00 pm, accompanied by Vice President Kashim Shettima, Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila, and several governors.
President Bola Tinubu led a host of dignitaries in receiving the remains, including the presidents of Guinea-Bissau and Niger Republic, former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, and business mogul Aliko Dangote.
In Daura, the funeral prayer led by Imam Hassan Yusuf lasted just minutes but carried profound weight for the thousands gathered. Residents lined the streets, many weeping openly as they remembered their hometown leader.
“He was humble and always had Nigeria’s interest at heart,” one mourner told reporters. The Emir of Daura described Buhari as irreplaceable, saying his contributions might not be matched “in a thousand years.”
Security remained tight throughout the ceremonies, from the airport to the burial site, as Nigeria bid farewell to its former leader with both military honors and personal grief. The quiet trees of Buhari’s home now stand as permanent sentinels over his final resting place.
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