With Over 26,000 Tweets, What Are Nigerians Saying About Buhari on Twitter?

The death of Nigeria’s former President Muhammadu Buhari has triggered an avalanche of reactions on social media, particularly on Twitter (now X), where over 26,000 tweets have been recorded within hours of the news breaking.

And what are Nigerians saying? The short answer: everything, grief, rage, indifference, reflection, even bitterness.

While a few Nigerians have offered standard condolences, many others are using the moment to critique a man they believe left the country worse than he met it. What was expected to be a solemn moment of national mourning has become a reckoning—a public outpouring of years of pent-up frustration.

“He had every single ingredient to succeed in office, especially unprecedented public goodwill, but ultimately flattered to deceive, and eventually failed,” tweeted investigative journalist Fisayo Soyombo, capturing what thousands echoed in more blunt words.

Some tweets dragged up memories of fuel price hikes, worsening insecurity, and widespread poverty during Buhari’s eight-year civilian presidency. Others recalled his failure to prosecute corrupt allies, his long medical trips abroad, and the repression of the #EndSARS protests.

“He supervised one of the worst elections in Nigeria’s history,” wrote @KazanOg. “I hope politicians learn that they will leave all their properties behind, including what they have stolen, when they die like Buhari.”

A number of users sharply pointed out the irony that Buhari, who once promised to end medical tourism, died in a UK hospital.

“Till the very end, he didn’t believe in Nigeria,” tweeted @victoh. “Died in a UK hospital.”

Still, there were those urging Nigerians to show restraint and not speak ill of the dead.

“Don’t speak ill of the dead. Buhari tried his best. Governance isn’t rice and beans,” said @HammedAnimas.

But this call for decorum was drowned by a louder wave of biting reflections, with many saying that Buhari’s leadership was a missed opportunity in Nigeria’s democratic journey. Some called him a “divisive figure,” others “a failed promise,” and several just called him “a disaster.”

And it’s not just his presidency under scrutiny. Users recalled his military rule in the 1980s, his silence in moments of national trauma, and his decision to hand over to what some now describe as “a worse version of himself.”

“It wasn’t even his failure that was painful,” tweeted @osquare78. “He had the opportunity to hand over to someone better. Instead, he handed over to a disaster. Now he’s gone and Nigeria remains in ruins.”

Some, like @Thingummy_Fire, offered more nuanced takes, suggesting Buhari’s failure was as much about those around him—his godfathers, political debts, and fear of appearing autocratic—as it was about his own inaction.

But if Twitter is any reflection of public sentiment, it is clear: Nigerians are not mourning a saint. They are remembering a president who, rightly or wrongly, represented unfulfilled promises and painful national memories.

For many, Buhari’s death is not just the end of a life. It is a moment to process what his time in power meant, for better or for worse.

And as one tweet put it bluntly:

“May God forgive him. But history won’t”.