Love or hate him, these 3 Buhari legacies will be hard to erase

The mixed reactions that trailed the announcement of former President Muhammadu Buhari's death on social media thoroughly reflected the polarising character of the late Nigerian leader.

Buhari passed away in a London hospital at the age of 82. His death brought to an end arguably the most significant era in Nigeria's history of governance.

Twice he led as a democratic president between 2015 and 2023; this, coupled with a two-year stint as a military leader in the 80s, meant he shepherded the country for a decade combined.

It is incontestable that the Daura-born military general was a political juggernaut whose mighty aura of austerity and straightforwardness resonated across the Niger.

However, whether he was able to transform this into progressive governance remained a subject for debate. While campaigning for office in 2015, the reformed democrat ran on a three-pronged agenda: restore security, revive the economy, and fight corruption.

ALSO READ: Buhari’s Passing: What it means for APC and Nigeria’s 2027 outlook

However, many Nigerians believe most of the problems he promised to solve even festered under his watch. For instance, though insurgency was tamed in the North-East, banditry and killings by criminal herders became widespread in other parts of the North.

At the same time, the economy experienced a significant decline, and corruption continued to be a substantial hindrance to development, despite promises of reform.

This leaves a big question: what are Buhari's legacies?

Buhari's regime was not without its bright spots. While he may have fallen short of many expectations, the late President left a real impact that will be remembered for years to come.

As the nation mourns the passing of the former President, let's examine three of his legacies.

One of the clogs holding back the country's progress has been a lack of adequate infrastructure. Nigeria is notoriously lacking in the modern infrastructure required for economic transformation.

ALSO READ: 'Thank you daddy' - Buhari's son tells Tinubu for honouring father's memory

Before Buhari came to power, Nigeria had suffered for decades from an infrastructural deficit, which impacted various sectors, including transportation, power, healthcare, and digital connectivity, thereby hampering productivity and discouraging investment.

In cases where there was little infrastructure to show, it was either moribund or not fit for purpose; otherwise, it was non-existent.

However, the story changed during Buhari's time. Despite having to contend with dwindling oil revenue, his administration undertook and completed several critical projects across the country.

From road construction to rail modernisation, and oil and gas installations, Buhari delivered projects that successive administrations before him had failed to achieve.

Some of the critical infrastructure he will be remembered for are as follows;

1. Lagos-Ibadan Expressway (completed)

2. Modernisation of Lagos-Ibadan Rail (completed)

3. Itakpe-Warri Rail (completed)

4. Port Harcourt-Aba Road

5. Second-Niger Bridge

6. AKK Gas Pipeline (50%)

7. Bodo–Bonny Road & Bridges

8. Dualisation of Kano–Maiduguri Expressway

9. Apapa–Oshodi–Oworonshoki Road

10. Lekki Deep Sea Port

11. Kano-Maradi (ongoing)

ALSO READ: Buhari gave me a job without knowing me from Adam - Gen. Irabor

One of Buhari's claims to power was his promise to tackle the Boko Haram menace head-on. Before he took power, the terrorist group had become untamable as they ran riot in the North-East and parts of the North-West and Abuja.

They rampaged through places of worship, schools, and government offices, even in the heart of the nation's capital. At the height of their terror reign, Boko Haram staged an audacious bombing attack on the United Nations headquarters in Abuja on Friday, 26 August 2011, killing 26 people, of whom 23 were UN staff.

Buhari wasn't spared as he was nearly assassinated by the group when a suicide car bomber rammed into his motorcade on Alkali Road in Kaduna city centre in 2014. While he only escaped by the whiskers, no fewer than 15 people were confirmed dead as a result of the attack.

The Boko Haram terror campaign jolted the citizens into a dreadful state of fear, so much that many Nigerians, who are known to be overly religious, became agoraphobic of places of worship. Churches and mosques across the country were heavily militarised to prevent suicide bombings, which had become commonplace.

In a dastardly act, the group killed at least 59 male students at the Federal Government College in Buni Yadi, Yobe, on February 25, 2014, with some of the victims burnt alive in their dormitories, while those who managed to escape the fire were shot or knifed to death.

Three months later, it struck again in Chibok, where 276 schoolgirls were kidnapped. This is without mentioning several attacks on military formations resulting in the loss of soldiers and the theft of ammunition.

As of May 29, 2015, no fewer than 17 local governments in the North-East were under the control of the daredevil terrorists. This was the security situation Buhari inherited.

By the end of his first tenure, the reinvigorated Nigerian Army had successfully reclaimed all the territories once held by the Boko Haram elements. Security gradually returned to the North-East as churches and mosques became a haven again to a significant degree.

In total, the Buhari government was able to secure the release of over 100 out of 276 Chibok girls kidnapped in 2014, and the Nigerian troops successfully cleared and hoisted the Nigerian flag in the Sambisa Forest, a place widely known as the group's ground zero.

ALSO READ: Tinubu renames UNIMAID after late President Muhammadu Buhari

Even though security challenges later metastasised to other regions, manifesting in the form of banditry, cattle rustling, kidnappings, and rogue herders' killings, Buhari took the fight to Boko Haram and other splinter groups, successfully curtailing their ability to stage rampant suicide bombings.

Another milestone Buhari was able to set was the quiet restructuring of the country using legislative instruments. Over the years, Nigerians had clamoured for amendments to laws that had become archaic, thereby impeding the nation's development.

In the same vein, demands for new laws to cater to emerging societal challenges were also on the rise. The importance of such laws can't be overstated, as they, among other things, provide a regulatory framework for businesses, services, and corporations to thrive while ensuring fair play in all national dealings.

Recognising the nexus between legislation and national growth, the former President signed into landmark bills, some of which were even initiated by the executive arm. The first one that readily comes to mind is the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, a culmination of decades of effort to reform the country's oil and gas sector.

Other landmark legislations by the Buhari government include the following:

1. Electoral Act (Amendment) Act, 2022

2. Nigerian Copyright Act, 2022

3. National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) Act, 2022,

4. Petroleum Industry Act, 2021

5. Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) Bill: The first legislation in Nigeria’s history focused on curbing anti-competition practices, establishing the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.

6. Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) Establishment Act, 2018

7. Not Too Young to Run Bill (2018)

8. A Bill to grant financial autonomy to States’ Houses of Assembly and States’ Judiciary (2018)

9. Nigeria Startup Act 2022

10. Climate Change Act 2021

ALSO READ: What Buhari told me before the 2023 election - Peter Obi