President Muhammadu Buhari has pleaded with Nigerians who may have been hurt by his administration, to pardon him, as he has 38 days to leave office.
The president also thanked Nigerians for tolerating him as their president for almost 8 years, adding that he is counting days and echoed his desire to hands off party politics for a while as well as stay away from Abuja.
This was made known by President Buhari when he spoke on Friday at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, during his final Sallah homage by residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) led by the FCT Minister, Mohammed Bello.
Buhari hailed democracy as the best form of government, saying that without it, he could not have become president after already serving as military Head of State.
He said he considered the Sallah celebration as a good coincidence to say goodbye and to “thank you for tolerating me for eight years.”
What President Buhari is saying
Buhari described himself as a lucky and fulfilled politician, having served as military governor of Borno State in 1976, Minister of Petroleum Resources in the same year and one-time Head of State (1983 – 1985).
- He said, “I am counting the days. Democracy is a good thing otherwise how can somebody from the other side be a president for two terms? My hometown to the Niger Republic is eight kilometres.
- “I think this is a very good coincidence for me to say goodbye to you and to thank you for tolerating me for more than seven and half years now.
- “I assure you, I have deliberately arranged to be as far away from you as possible not because I don’t appreciate the love you’ve shown to me, but because I think I’ve gotten what I have asked and I would rather quietly retire to my hometown.
- “Having been a governor, minister and the president twice, I think God has given me an incredible opportunity to serve as your president. And I thank God for that.
- “So, please, whoever feels I have done wrong to them, we are all humans. There is no doubt I hurt some people and I wish you will pardon me. And those that think that I have hurt them so much, please, pardon me.”
Insists on May 29 handover to next administration
President Buhari reassured the nation that nothing would stop the May 29 handover date to the next administration.
The president faulted the narrative that justice cannot be found in courts due to nepotism and ethnic sentiments, arguing that all Supreme Court justices in the election cases he took to the court in 2003, 2007 and 2011 were all Northern Muslims. Yet, he lost.