In a solemn mark of national mourning, President Bola Tinubu has ordered that Nigeria’s national flag be flown at half-staff across the country to honour the immediate past president, Muhammadu Buhari.
According to a statement released by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, President Tinubu personally reached out to Buhari’s widow, Mrs Aishat Buhari, to express his deep condolences on behalf of the nation.
“President Tinubu has spoken with Mrs Aishat Buhari, the former President’s widow, and offered his deep condolences,” the statement read.
The President also directed Vice President Kashim Shettima to travel to the United Kingdom to accompany the late former President’s body back home to Nigeria for burial.
A Symbol of National Respect
Flying the national flag at half-staff or half-mast is a time-honoured tradition that symbolises national grief and respect following the death of a significant figure or during moments of national tragedy. By lowering the flag below the top of the pole, it leaves space that some traditions describe as representing an “invisible flag of death” above the lowered flag.
Former President Muhammadu Buhari, who passed away in the United Kingdom, served as Nigeria’s democratically elected president from 2015 to 2023, after first leading the country as a military head of state between January 1984 and August 1985.
The late leader’s body will be accompanied back to Nigeria by Vice President Shettima, as ordered by President Tinubu, who has assured the Buhari family of the federal government’s full support during this period of mourning.
Details of burial arrangements are expected to be announced by the presidency in the coming days.
The death of former President Buhari marks the end of an era for many Nigerians who lived through his years as a military ruler and later as an elected leader who served two consecutive terms.
As the national flag flies at half-staff, the gesture serves as a reminder of his legacy and contributions to Nigeria’s political history.
President Tinubu has called on all Nigerians to join him in extending thoughts and prayers to the Buhari family and to remember the late leader’s decades of service to the country.
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