Senate President Godswill Akpabio has paid glowing tribute to late former President Muhammadu Buhari, describing him as “a man forged in the furnace of battle and tempered in the trials of governance.”
Senator Akpabio spoke on Thursday during a special session of the expanded Federal Executive Council meeting held in honour of Buhari at the State House in Abuja.
In his remarks, Akpabio praised Buhari for his discipline, integrity, and commitment to Nigeria. He said the former president lived a life of service and sacrifice.
“There are moments in the life of a nation when she must pause—not out of routine, but out of reverence. Today is such a moment, as we gather in solemn remembrance of President Muhammadu Buhari—a man forged in the furnace of battle and tempered in the trials of governance. A man who gave everything he had to a country that asked everything of him,” Akpabio said.
The senate president acknowledged that Buhari was not without flaws, but stressed that he was a principled leader.
“President Muhammadu Buhari was not perfect. No leader is. But he was principled. He stood for something. And in a world where it is easy to chase headlines, he chose instead to chase honour. Where others sought glory, he sought duty,” he said.
Akpabio, who served as a minister under Buhari, described his experience working closely with the late president.
“As a minister in his cabinet, appointed by him, I saw President Buhari unplugged. He was not flamboyant—far from it. His voice was measured. His steps, deliberate. His public demeanour, austere. But beneath that calm exterior beat the heart of a patriot—unyielding, unbending, and utterly uninterested in personal comfort when duty called.”
He recalled Buhari’s journey from military service to civilian leadership. Akpabio said Buhari never gave up on Nigeria, no matter the challenges.
“He served this nation first in uniform, and decades later, returned to serve it once more—this time in flowing agbada. Whether clad in khaki or in civilian robes, through coups and campaigns, criticisms and crises, he never wavered in his belief in the promise of Nigeria.”
Akpabio noted that Buhari left his mark on the country, with achievements too numerous to list.
“President Buhari did not merely pass through the corridors of power; he left his boots and his imprints in them. He believed that discipline mattered. That integrity mattered. That leadership, even when lonely, must be anchored in something greater than power.”
He described Buhari as a tough but honest leader.
“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 even Buhari’s critics acknowledged his integrity.
“Some disagreed with him. That is the nature of democracy. But even his fiercest critics will admit: he did not pilfer the nation’s purse, nor pander to its pleasures. He remained, to the very end, a sentinel of Spartan simplicity and austere integrity.”
The Senate President ended his tribute by reflecting on Buhari’s legacy.
“His life reminds us of a truth often forgotten in this noisy age—that greatness is not always loud, and that history, in its wisdom, sometimes reserves its most solemn applause for those who laboured not for fame, but for legacy.”
“Let it be said by generations to come, that a man once walked this land with a firm gait, a steady gaze, and an iron sense of duty. His name was Muhammadu Buhari. May God bless his memory. May God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
