Fatima Buhari, daughter of the late President Muhammadu Buhari, has revealed that her father’s signature was allegedly forged on official documents during his time in office.
In the biography From Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari by Charles Omole, Fatima, a forensic auditor, said she reviewed several documents and discovered signatures falsely attributed to her father. She noted that others had also raised concerns about similar forgeries during his presidency.
She explained that forgery was not unique to her father’s administration, pointing out that previous governments faced similar challenges. The book also details instances where presidential speeches and directives were altered after being approved.
One notable incident occurred during a trip to the United States, when President Buhari was speaking at a small conference. Fatima noticed that the text he was reading did not match the speech he had approved. “You were stopping,” she told him. He quietly explained that someone had modified the text, but he chose to speak in his own words instead.
The biography notes that such misrepresentations—directives being diluted, statements reworded, and intentions subtly changed—were frequent, sometimes due to bureaucratic errors, and at other times orchestrated by a small clique.
Fatima also revealed that her father believed his official residence at the State House was under surveillance. To avoid being overheard, they often communicated in writing rather than speaking aloud. “A daughter and her father sit quietly together. He makes a small gesture, touching his cheek as if he has a toothache, and signals that they shouldn’t speak aloud. He believes ‘they’ have a listening device planted in his office,” the book states.
Some security chiefs who served under Buhari corroborated these concerns, confirming the discovery of unusual devices in his office and residence during routine security sweeps.
The biography provides insight into the challenges the late president and his family faced in protecting the integrity of communications while navigating a high-security environment.
