Garba Mohammed
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Tuesday received the remains of former President Muhammadu Buhari at the Umaru Musa Yar’Adua International Airport in Katsina State, as Nigeria commenced the final rites of passage for one of its most prominent post-independence leaders.
Tinubu, who arrived the Katsina airport at 1:48 p.m., led a federal delegation comprising governors, ministers, and top-ranking political and military officials to welcome the body of his predecessor. The late president’s remains were transported from London aboard a Nigerian Air Force aircraft, touching down in the northwest state amid a brief, solemn military ceremony.
Katsina State Governor Dikko Radda received the president at the airport, joined by former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Deputy Senate President Jibrin Barau, Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas, several National Assembly members, and dignitaries including Alhaji Aliko Dangote, former Minister Lai Mohammed, and members of the APC National Working Committee.
Following the ceremony, Buhari’s body was transported to Daura, his hometown, where funeral prayers (Jana’iza) and interment were scheduled to take place in accordance with Islamic tradition.
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, who had earlier briefed the press in Abuja, confirmed the funeral arrangements. He said President Tinubu was determined to ensure that the ceremonies were conducted with “dignity, order, and national respect.”
“As part of the national mourning, the President has directed the opening of condolence registers across all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), as well as Nigerian embassies and missions abroad,” Idris said. A central condolence register has also been opened at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja.
Idris noted that the outpouring of condolences from world leaders reflected Buhari’s global stature and legacy as both a military ruler and a two-term democratically elected president.
To coordinate all national activities, an inter-ministerial committee chaired by Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, has been set up in collaboration with the Katsina State Government and the Buhari family.
The government has also dispatched 25 members of the Federal Executive Council to Katsina for the burial rites. These officials are expected to remain in Daura for the third-day Islamic prayer scheduled for Wednesday.
Buhari died on Sunday in a London hospital at the age of 82. His death has drawn tributes from across the globe, with many describing him as a leader defined by discipline, integrity, and national service.