President Muhammadu Buhari says he is eager to handover power on May 29 and return to his Daura home in Katsina State.
Buhari said this at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja at the ninth and final Sallah homage by Muslims and residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), led by the minister, Mohammed Bello.
“Finally, I can’t even wait to go home. I think this is a very good coincidence for me to say goodbye to you and thank you for tolerating me for more than seven and half years now,” he said.
The President, had said that he will move far away from Abuja, the nation’s capital after the May 29 handover, to avoid distracting the incoming President, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, in decision making.
He noted that he has decided to retire to Daura, which is far away from Abuja, in order to get some respite after years of work.
“I can’t wait to go to Daura. If they make any noise to disturb me there I will leave for Niger Republic. I deliberately arranged to be as far away as possible. I got what I wanted and will quietly retire to my hometown,” he said.
Buhari, however, appealed to Nigerians who he might have hurt in the course of his duties to pardon him.
President Buhari described himself as being lucky to have led Nigeria in various capacities.
He said, “Having been a governor, minister and president twice, I think God has given us an incredible opportunity to serve as your president. And I thank God for that. So, please, whoever feels I have done wrong, we are all humans.
“There is no doubt that I have hurt some people, so and I wish you would pardon me. And those who think I have hurt them so much, please pardon me,” he added.
Buhari, who received the delegation after observing the Eid-el-Fitr prayers at the Mambilla Barracks Prayer Ground, Abuja, together with members of his family, thanked Nigerians for tolerating him for close to eight years of his administration.