How mistrust in Aso Rock led to Buhari locking his room against me – Aisha Buhari

Former First Lady, Aisha Buhari, has revealed that rumours within the Presidential Villa alleging that she planned to kill her husband, late President Muhammadu Buhari, deeply affected him and disrupted his health routine, eventually contributing to the illness that kept him away from office for 154 days in 2017.

Her account is contained in a new 600-page biography titled From Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari, authored by Dr Charles Omole and launched at the State House on Monday.

The 22-chapter book traces Buhari’s life from his childhood in Daura, Katsina State, to his final days in a London hospital in July 2025.

According to the book, Aisha Buhari had long managed her husband’s meals and supplements, maintaining a strict feeding and nutrition schedule that helped him cope with the effects of age and a history of malnutrition-related symptoms.

She reportedly insisted that Buhari did not suffer from any mysterious or chronic illness, stressing that consistency in nutrition was key to his wellbeing.

“Elderly bodies require gentle, consistent support,” she was quoted as saying, adding that Buhari’s strength depended largely on a carefully managed routine of meals and supplements.

The former First Lady explained that the health crisis began after the family moved into Aso Rock, where the established routine gradually collapsed.

She convened meetings with close aides, including the President’s physician, security officials and household staff, to outline a nutrition plan involving specific meals, vitamins and supplements administered at fixed hours.

However, she said the plan soon broke down amid fear, suspicion and damaging gossip within the Presidency.

“Then came the gossip and the fearmongering.”

“They said I wanted to kill him,” the book quoted her as saying.

According to her, Buhari believed the rumours for a short period and began locking his room and changing personal habits.

More critically, meals were delayed or skipped entirely, while supplements were discontinued.

“For a year, he did not have lunch. They mismanaged his meals,” she said.

The situation deteriorated, leading to Buhari’s prolonged medical stays in the United Kingdom in 2017, during which he temporarily handed over power to then Vice President Yemi Osinbajo. Upon his return, Buhari publicly admitted that he had never been so ill and that he had received blood transfusions during treatment.

Aisha Buhari dismissed long-standing claims that her husband was poisoned, maintaining that the illness was the result of a breakdown in routine nutrition rather than any covert plot.

In London, doctors reportedly placed Buhari on an even more intensive supplement regimen.

Initially, she said, Buhari was hesitant and fearful, but she personally ensured compliance by discreetly mixing prescribed supplements into his food and drinks.

According to her, the recovery was swift.

“After just three days, he threw away the stick he was walking with. After a week, he was receiving relatives,” she recalled, describing the moment as both the beginning and the reversal of his illness.

The biography also touches on the climate of mistrust surrounding the Presidency at the time.

Aisha Buhari alleged that there were listening devices within the Villa and that private conversations were monitored, contributing to anxiety and fear around the President.

She also dismissed rumours that Buhari had a body double, popularly known as “Jibril of Sudan,” describing the claim as absurd and blaming poor communication by government officials for allowing conspiracy theories to flourish.

Dr Omole noted that while critics often cited Buhari’s reliance on foreign medical care as a failure of Nigeria’s health system, a more balanced view acknowledges the limitations of local healthcare after decades of underinvestment, especially for an elderly leader requiring specialised treatment.

He also highlighted Buhari’s decision to formally transfer power during his medical absences as evidence of institutional discipline, even in the midst of personal health challenges.

Very Nigerian.

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