Buhari Critics Will Admit He Didn’t Embezzle Funds, Says Akpabio

Senate President Godswill Akpabio has praised the late former President Muhammadu Buhari as a leader of integrity who served Nigeria without looting the public treasury.

Speaking during a special expanded Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting held in Abuja on Thursday to honour Buhari, Akpabio said even the former president’s harshest critics would agree that he did not embezzle funds while in office.

“And let us be honest, he was tough. He was a soldier who did not flinch under fire, a leader who did not flee from responsibility, and above all, a Nigerian whose loyalty to this nation was never up for sale,” Akpabio said.

He emphasized that Buhari’s style of leadership was rooted in patriotism, discipline, and an unwavering belief in the nation’s potential. “His toughness was born not out of pride but of patriotism… And yet some disagreed with him — that is the nature of democracy. But even his fiercest critics will admit that he did not pilfer the nation’s purse nor pander to its pleasures to the very end,” he added.

The event was attended by members of the National Assembly, state governors, ministers, and Buhari’s family members, led by his son, Yusuf.

Buhari, who ruled Nigeria as both a military and civilian president, passed away on Sunday at a clinic in London at the age of 82. His remains were flown back to Nigeria on Tuesday and received by President Bola Tinubu in Katsina before being buried in his hometown, Daura, during a state funeral.