How National Assembly made Buhari reluctant hero of electoral reform, devolution of powers

Shortly before the 2011 presidential election, the candidate of the defunct Congress for Progressives Change (CPC), Muhammadu Buhari, flanked by associates, addressed the press at the International Conference Centre in Abuja. In the middle of the briefing, the retired general could not hold back tears as he dabbed his cheeks with a handkerchief.

Was he crying about his previous two defeats at the polls or was it due to the “love he has for the country?”

Over 800 Nigerians reportedly lost their lives in post-election violence that year; violence that many blamed the supporters of Mr Buhari for.

“The monkey and baboon” comment the CPC candidate made before the polls was cited as an incitement to his followers in the North after he lost the election.

Four years later, Mr Buhari defeated the incumbent president, Goodluck Jonathan. While the alliance of the major opposition parties has been credited for making the feat of Mr Buhari possible, another major factor was the…