By Joke Kujenya
SCHEDULED TO arrive at Katsina International Airport on Tuesday, the body of late President Muhammadu Buhari will be received by President Bola Tinubu, with a brief military ceremony preceding its final journey to Daura for burial.
Vice President Kashim Shettima is expected to accompany the body from London, arriving by noon with a high-level Federal Government delegation.
From Katsina, President Tinubu will then lead the solemn journey to Daura, the hometown of the late President, where the Islamic funeral ceremony and interment will take place at the former President’s residence.
The burial is going to be coordinated by an inter-ministerial committee chaired by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, working closely with the Katsina State Government and the Buhari family.
Already, twenty-five ministers from the Federal Executive Council (FEC) have been directed to travel to Katsina and participate in the full burial proceedings.
They are also scheduled to remain in Daura for the Third-Day Prayers on Wednesday, 16 July.
As a result, the Special Federal Executive Council Meeting originally planned for Tuesday, 15 July, has been rescheduled to Friday, 18 July.
The Federal Government also declared today, Tuesday, a public holiday as part of the ongoing seven-day National Mourning period, which began on Sunday, 13 July.
National flags are directed to fly at half-mast, and all state governments and private institutions are expected to observe the directive.
President Tinubu also instructed the opening of condolence registers across all federal ministries, departments, and agencies, as well as at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja and Nigerian embassies and missions abroad.
Tributes have continued to pour in from world leaders and prominent Nigerians.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres described Buhari as “a calm force in a stormy region,” while former United Kingdom (UK) Prime Minister David Cameron noted Buhari’s efforts to restore confidence in Nigerian governance. Former US President Barack Obama described Buhari as “a man of integrity” with a strong anti-corruption agenda.
Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, acknowledged his “personal discipline and anti-corruption stance,” and AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina highlighted Buhari’s support for African financial institutions.
Spiritual leader William Kumuyi commended his modest lifestyle and contentment.
Former Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo remembered him as “a friend to Ghana and a stabilising father-figure,” while Aisha Buhari, his widow, said the former leader “lived for Nigeria.”
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo said they often disagreed but could not deny Buhari’s honesty.
Emir of Kano, Lamido Sanusi, reflected on his legacy as one of “moral accountability in government.”
