The remains of former President Muhammadu Buhari were interred amid tears and tributes in his hometown, Daura, Katsina State, on Tuesday.
Buhari died in a London clinic on Sunday, 13 July, at the age of 82, after a prolonged battle with illness.
The body encased in a casket draped in the Nigerian Green White Green flag was lowered to the earth around 5.50pm after a solemn prayer session based on Islamic faith and conducted by the Chief Imam of Katsina State.
The interment marked the end of an era of the late elder statesman, civil war veteran and leader who led his country, Nigeria, both as a military Head of State and an elected civilian President.
Nigerian and African leaders as well as other dignitaries – all led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, graced the ceremony in Daura to pay the departed General the last respect as he journeyed to the great beyond.
Expectedly, Army Generals and Service Chiefs were the pallbearers of his remains on a stretcher to his graveside for the touching interment and followed with a 21-gun salute, a demonstration of collective final honour from the nation’s military leadership.
Also, large crowds lined the windy streets of Daura and gathered at the former President’s residence to pay their last respects.
The former President’s final journey began on Tuesday afternoon, when his body arrived from London at Umaru Musa Yar’Adua International Airport in Katsina.
President Tinubu and other dignitaries, including Vice President Kashim Shettima, President Umaru Sissoco Embalo of Guinea-Bissau, Prime Minister of Niger Republic, Ali Lamine Zeine, former President of Niger Republic, Issoufou Mahamadou, former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, governors and business leaders, escorted the late President’s remains on the hour-long drive to Daura.
Upon arrival, a brief lying-in-state ceremony was held at President Buhari’s residence, followed by the funeral prayer (Salatul Janazah) led by Sheikh Salisu Rabiu, the Imam of the Central Mosque in Daura.
President Tinubu and the late President’s close family members witnessed the final interment at 5.50 p.m
The state funeral was marked by full military honours, including a reveille and a 21-gun salute. A weeklong programme of events will continue later on Tuesday with a condolence visit to President Buhari’s family by the Presidential Committee.
The team included Major-General Mohammed Usman, Major-General Oluwafemi Williams, Major-General Shuaibu Nuhu, Rear Admiral Suleiman Dahun, Rear Admiral Jonathan Ajodo, Rear Admiral Samuel Ngatuwa, Air Vice Marshal Adeniyi Herbert Amesinlola, Air Vice Marshal Idi Sanni, and Air Vice Marshal Obinna Obiabaka. Major General Mike Alechenu coordinated the team.
The pallbearers wheeled the former leader’s casket in a slow march, in sync with the hymn “God Be With You Till We Meet Again,” passing through a full military guard of honour comprising six officers and 96 soldiers drawn from the Nigerian Armed Forces.
President Tinubu and others walked behind the casket trolley in a solemn procession. The pallbearers escorted the casket into a waiting military hearse for the one-hour journey to Daura, where funeral prayers and the burial ceremony would take place.
The ceremony had in attendance dignitaries including foreign emissaries, state governors, ministers, political elites and traditional rulers were in Daura to pay their last respects to late Buhari.
President Umaru Sissoco Embaló of Guinea-Bissau; Former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Prime Minister of Niger, Ali Lamine Zeine, former President of Niger, Issoufou Mahamadou, Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai; Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu; First Lady Remi Tinubu; Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin; Emir of Daura, Umar Faruk and that of Katsina, Abdilmuminu Kabir.
Others include: Former Senate President Ahmad Lawan, former Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Ali Pantami; former Governor of Rivers State and former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, former Governor of Ogun State, Ibikunle Amosun; and Ali Modu Sheriff, former Governor of Borno State and former PDP National Chairman.
Others are Yahaya Bello, former Governor of Kogi State, Aliyu Wammako, former Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, former Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Masari, former Governor of Katsina State, Kayode Fayemi, former Governor of Ekiti State and Pauline Tallen, former Deputy Governor of Plateau State and former Minister of Women Affairs.
Additional report: The Nation
