Femi Adesina, the former special adviser on media and publicity to Muhammadu Buhari, has offered an intimate perspective on the late former President’s reputation for financial integrity, explaining the deep-seated roots of his nickname, “Mai Gaskiya” (the honest one).
In a detailed commemorative article released for what would have been Buhari’s 83rd birthday, Adesina asserted that the late leader’s refusal to exploit public funds despite decades in powerful roles remains his most defining legacy.
The tribute marks a somber anniversary for the former president’s associates. Adesina clarified the timeline of his passing, noting that Buhari would have clocked 83 years old, today, Wednesday the 17th of December, 2025, but died five months earlier on the 13th of July, 2025.
To illustrate Buhari’s hands-off approach to the nation’s treasury, Adesina recalled a revealing conversation with Mele Kyari, the former Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). The exchange took place during a pivotal moment in the administration’s legislative history.
Adesina shared the encounter as follows: “The day the Petroleum Industry Bill was to be signed into law, I was conversing with the then Group Managing Director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Mele Kyari. And he told me he had never seen anyone like Buhari.
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“He has never sent a note to me through anyone that I should do that person a favor, or give money. An amazing person.” Many heads of agencies and parastatals under him have the same testimony.
“And that was how he was all his life. He would never touch public money, despite all the positions he held. No wonder the average northerner dubbed him Mai Gaskiya (the honest one). He was frugal to a fault. Simply incorruptible,” he said.
Adesina maintained that this “frugal to a fault” nature was not a political persona but a lifelong commitment.
By refusing to use his influence for personal or crony-based enrichment, Buhari solidified his standing as a figure of unique moral authority among the “average Northerner,” a sentiment Adesina claims was echoed by nearly everyone who managed government parastatals under his watch.