Nigeria’s former President Muhammadu Buhari is dead, and the people’s reaction, especially on social media, is skewed towards celebration and a sense of “finally”. While some wished for the peaceful repose of his soul, many others wished otherwise and wished for God’s strict judgment without mercy on him.
The hate did not end with only the late president, some people who wished him “RIP”, and cautioned against the negative reactions and trolls given to him, were also criticized.
Why Many Nigerians Seemed To Hate Former President Buhari
Going through many of the comments, the late Buhari seemed to be hated because of some events and policies that occurred during his administration. These mainly border on poor security and a dwindling economy.
Below is a list of the many grievances held against him:
- Hike in the cost of petrol and other energy products like kerosene and gas
- # EndSARS movement. A protest that started due to the high-handedness and criminal accusations on the SARS unit of the police force, which quickly turned into a nationwide protest on the poor state of the economy.
- Twitter (now X) ban.
- Labelling the angry youths as lazy
- Constant killing that took place in the northern part of the country,
- The rise of the Fulani Herdsmen, as well as the Boko Haram terrorists that left thousands killed and thousands more displaced. The killings that sometimes left whole communities sacked were said to be a form of ethnic cleansing and land grab by Fulani cattle herders.
- Buhari, being from the Fulani tribe himself, was accused of playing it light with the violent Fulani herdsmen. Despite the atrocities and eyewitness accounts from survivors, there is no widely publicized information about a convicted Fulani Herder and a traditional ruler in Ondo state, even accused the Police of always releasing herdsmen that were arrested, after an attack.
- Rise in the price of food, which was a result of the constant attacks on Northern farmlands by Fulani herders and other terrorist groups, as well as inflation caused by the depreciating local currency.
- Crash in the value of the naira. During his tenure, the official exchange rate to the dollar depreciated by 131.5%, from around ₦199 to $1 when he took office in May 2015. While the black-market rates rose by about 218%, from ₦220 in 2015 to ₦700 in 2023.
Here are some of the negative comments found online
“After you spoiled the country. May God judge you according to your deeds.“
“Gone too late“.
“My sincerest prayers is for Allah to kindly PUNISH buhari , his descendants living and unborn and his ancestors dead and gone ……….. If you come at me here i will reset all your stupid brains.”
“He banned Twitter to silence truth, ignored the cries of END SARS victims, watched citizens die in needless cash chaos, let students rot during ASUU strikes, called us lazy for demanding better, and wasted 8 years of hope. If peace is his portion, let it be God’s call but history won’t be kind”, Adukeade wrote.
Some others also leaned on conspiracy theories that Buhari has since died and was replaced by an impostor tagged “Jubril from Sudan”, and some other comments suggested the writer wished the current President, Tinubu, be next.
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