Former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has disclosed that his wife advised him to refrain from making negative comments about the late former President Muhammadu Buhari following his recent passing in July.
Fayose shared this during an appearance on Politics Today, a Channels Television current affairs programme, on Friday.
He noted that Nigerians have a tendency to only speak well of people after their death, saying, “The people in Nigeria only praise the dead.”
“When President Buhari died, I wanted to come out and abuse him (but) my wife called me not to say so.”
Buhari, who governed Nigeria between 2015 and 2023, died on July 13 in a hospital in the United Kingdom.
He was buried two days later at his private residence in Daura, Katsina State.
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A known critic of Buhari’s administration, Fayose maintained his position that the late former leader failed to meet expectations during his tenure.
“Would you say Buhari performed? I’m not among those praising the dead.
“Don’t honour me when I die. When I die, I’m gone.
“When President Buhari was in government, we all know what this country was.
“So, nobody should come and tell me that (President Bola) Tinubu is not doing well,” he said.
Contrasting Buhari with his successor, Fayose said President Bola Tinubu is more approachable and transparent in leadership.
“He (Tinubu) is accessible. Was the former president accessible?
“A lot of things were happening in those days but do you still find them in the system?
“He is not a perfect man but we are not where we were,” the former governor said.
In his defence of the current administration, Fayose said the country’s problems were too complex to be solved quickly.
“Nigeria is a sick country; it will take heaven to pull it out at once.
“What miracle can anybody do in two years?
“The situation is critical, wide and deep. Tinubu inherited a very bad economy,” he said.
