I Never Knew I’ll Lead Nigeria – Buhari
BY EDMOND ODOK – With his eight-year tenure, which commenced on May 29, 2015, drawing to a close on May 29, 2023, President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday claims he never knew destiny would ever gift him the country’s leadership on two separate occasions
A statement by Garba Shehu, his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, titled: “President Buhari hosts children at State House, unveils his comic book on children’s role in nation building”, quoted the President as saying he never thought of leading the country as a military officer and also as a civilian.
The President, who made the remarks when he hosted some select pupils and students from schools in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) as part of activities marking the 2023 Children’s Day celebration, said; “As students, we were told that we were the leaders of tomorrow. I never knew that I would one day lead my country, much less lead it twice as a military officer and as a civilian”.
Also using the occasion to launch his comic book highlighting seven roles children can play in building the nation, President Buhari told a delegation of about 40 children he hosted at the State House Council Chamber to mark his last Children’s Day celebration as President, that he was fulfilled interacting with them on the cusp of his exit from office after his eight-year Presidency.
Admonishing the children to build a great Nigeria through honesty, patriotism, and unity, the President also encouraged them to be good citizens before becoming leaders, highlighting the importance of self-reliance and responsibility to build and develop Nigeria.
According to him; “God spared my life to grow up from a child to an adult. As students, we were told that we were the leaders of tomorrow. I never knew that I would one day lead my country, much less lead it twice as a military officer and as a civilian.
“Therefore, I would like to say that among you, there are future councilors, lawmakers, governors, and presidents. But you must first be good citizens before you become leaders.
“You may become engineers, doctors, accountants, journalists, IT experts, judges, and lawyers, to name just a few. The country is going to be in your hands one day. We are not going to import foreigners to come and run our country. We must do that ourselves.”
In the comic book titled; “How To Make Nigeria Great,” the President outlined seven lessons from the publication that will help shape the future of a great country. These include: believing in God and loving Nigeria; Understanding and respecting our differences; Living by the rules; Thinking for the community; Embracing good values; Seeing government money as our money; and Being good children at home and in school.
President Buhari, who appreciated the children for spending time with him, reiterated a statement he made about four decades ago; “I said something in 1984 and I will end this speech by repeating it, ‘We have no other country but Nigeria. We will stay here and salvage it together.’”
It is on record that after taking power in a military coup, President Buhari served as Nigeria’s Head of State from 31 December 1983 to 27 August 1985 when he was also overthrown in another coup d’etat led by General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida.
