Former presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, has pushed back against public claims that Muhammadu Buhari was out of touch while in office, insisting the ex-president may have been the most aware and well-informed leader Nigeria has ever had.
Speaking in an interview on Arise News, Shehu said Buhari was far from the passive or disengaged figure many Nigerians believed him to be. Instead, he described him as a quiet, deeply informed leader who deliberately avoided the media spotlight.
“President Buhari didn’t want to cut ribbons or chase the cameras. He let his work speak for him,” Shehu said. “This idea that he wasn’t aware is completely false. In fact, he may have been the most aware president this country has ever had.”
Shehu recalled that during daily media briefings with Buhari, they often found that he had already read or heard everything before they arrived.
“Every morning we came with newspapers and broadcast summaries, but he’d already gone through them. He was always ahead,” he added.
Shehu also revealed that Buhari encouraged citizens to use the media as a direct channel to get his attention—faster than going through the usual bureaucratic routes.
While he admitted Buhari’s leadership was sometimes seen as slow, Shehu explained it was part of a deliberate shift from military rule to democratic governance.
“He used to act with military urgency. But as a democratic president, he was determined to respect due process. Nigerians wanted speed, but he insisted on the rule of law,” Shehu said.
On whether Buhari now supports any move to unseat President Bola Tinubu or abandon the APC, Shehu was firm: “Not at all.”
“Buhari remains loyal to the APC. It gave him his presidency. He’s not going to betray the party or President Tinubu, who played a key role in helping him win,” Shehu concluded.
The interview has since sparked a fresh round of debate online, with some Nigerians still questioning Buhari’s legacy, while others say Shehu’s comments offer a different side to a presidency often criticised for its quietness.
