In a candid and revealing reflection, Yusuf Buhari, son of former Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, has painted a stark picture of how political power shapes personal relationships, describing a dramatic rise and fall in the attention he received based on his father’s political status.
He recounted that immediately after the 2015 presidential election, when incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan famously conceded defeat and called Muhammadu Buhari, his life changed overnight. Yusuf began receiving an overwhelming 2,000 calls a day, starting as early as 4 a.m. The callers ranged from old classmates and distant acquaintances to extended family and even former domestic staff who had worked for the Buhari family years prior.
“The calls would start coming in as early as 4 a.m.,” he recalled, highlighting the relentless nature of the sudden attention.
His team had to develop strategies to manage the influx, especially from callers with “bogus, untraceable explanations.” His assistant became adept at crafting polite excuses to swiftly end such conversations.
However, the contrast came sharply into focus after the transfer of power in 2023. “The moment my dad left power and handed the baton to His Excellency Bola Tinubu, the calls dropped dramatically to about 100 a day,” Yusuf stated.
The most profound silence followed the death of his father. After the former president was buried, the calls dwindled further to just about 20 daily, primarily from immediate siblings and essential business associates.
The observation concludes with a sober note on the transient nature of such social and political capital. “The phones no longer ring. Nobody truly cares…” Yusuf remarked, underscoring the isolation that often follows the departure from the pinnacle of power and public life.
His account serves as a powerful anecdote on the transactional nature of many relationships in political spheres and the quiet, often lonely reality that follows life after the presidency.
