Former President Muhammadu Buhari finally laid to rest in Daura
Former President Muhammadu Buhari has been laid to rest in his hometown of Daura, Katsina State.
The burial took place around 5:50 p.m. on Tuesday at his private residence, following a solemn funeral prayer held at the nearby helipad.
The prayer was led by the Chief Imam of Katsina State, in accordance with Islamic rites.
Buhari passed away on Sunday in a London hospital after battling a prolonged illness.
Following the announcement of his death, President Bola Tinubu instructed Vice President Kashim Shettima and the Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, to accompany the late leader’s remains back to Nigeria.
The body arrived on Tuesday and was received by President Tinubu at the Umaru Musa Yar’Adua International Airport in Katsina. Dignitaries present included Vice President Shettima, Guinea-Bissau’s President Umaro Sissoco Embaló, Niger’s Prime Minister Ali Lamine Zeine, former Nigerien President Issoufou Mahamadou, and Nigeria’s former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
A military honour guard, consisting of nine senior officers, bore the casket, which was draped in the Nigerian national flag.
The pallbearers included Major-Generals Mohammed Usman, Oluwafemi Williams, and Shuaibu Nudu; Rear Admirals Suleiman Dahun, Jonathan Ajodo, and Samuel Ngatuwa; and Air Vice Marshals Adeniyi Herbert Amesinlola, Idi Sanni, and Obinna Obiabaka.
The team was coordinated by Major General Mike Alechenu.
In a slow, dignified march accompanied by the hymn “God Be With You Till We Meet Again,” the pallbearers wheeled the casket past a full military guard of honour made up of six officers and 96 soldiers.
President Tinubu and other dignitaries followed the casket in a solemn procession before it was placed into a military hearse for the final journey to Daura.
The state burial included full military honours, highlighted by a 21-gun salute. Upon arrival in Daura, the final funeral rites were conducted, after which the former president was buried in the garden of his residence.
