It doesn’t take much to burn down a forest. With tensions already high and waiting to burn any and everything to the ground, fake news and rumours won’t help anyone.
In September of 2020, Hanan Buhari, daughter of the First Family of Nigeria, was given to Mohammed Turad as a wife. A colourful wedding by every standard, the families of the newlyweds even invited chefs and decorators from all around the world, especially Dubai, to add even more colour to the event. Then came the news that the First Lady, Dr. Aisha Buhari, decided to accompany these event chauffeurs back to Dubai, and has remained there for three months.
The lion bite in the news of the first lady’s alleged disappearance is that she doesn’t intend to return anytime soon, having realised that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) offers better security than her native country, or Aso Rock Villa.
To make matters worse, a supposed insider from the Presidency reported that Aisha Buhari is getting very comfortable over there in Dubai, especially since she has been visiting the ‘Jewel of Arabia’ months before her daughter’s wedding, shopping, relaxing, apparently preferring to remain removed from the tensions in Nigeria. Thus, using the wedding as a cover, she allegedly ran out and away.
Nigerians are not taking any of these well. Understandably, folks have begun to question their own safety and peace of mind, considering the logical conclusion that their leader-in-chief has no confidence in her own safety.
However, there is little evidence to back the claim that Aisha Buhari relocated to Dubai. For one, the indicated ‘proof’ of her having gone ‘offline’ on social media since October is airy—isn’t there an internet connection in Dubai? Moreover, Aisha Buhari has proved her mettle as a strong, compassionate, and understanding leader, and the reports that her alleged tiff with Sabiu ‘Tunde’ Yusuf and Mamman Daura scared her off are nothing but fantasies.
Needless to say, Dr. Aisha Buhari is very much interested in the welfare of her Nigerian people: she has not—and will never, while in power—leave them to fight for themselves and relocate.
