President Muhammadu Buhari has appealed to Nigerians he may have hurt one way or the other in the course of his nearly eight years in office to pardon him.
Gatekeepers News reports that Buhari spoke at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, when he received residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) led by the FCT Minister, Mohammed Bello who visited him on the occasion of Eid-el-Fitr on Friday.
The President, who also used the occasion to reflect on his trajectory serving as military Head of State to an elected president said he believed Sallah celebration was a good occasion to say goodbye and to “thank you for tolerating me for eight years.”
He added that while he is counting days to his exit from office, he has resolved to stay far from Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory at the end of his tenure.
He told his visitors that he is from the extreme corner of Nigeria, Daura in Katsina State, which he said is just eight kilometers from Niger Republic.
“I am counting the days. Democracy is a good thing otherwise how can somebody from the other side be a president for two terms? My hometown to Niger Republic is eight kilometres.
“I think this is a very good coincidence for me to say goodbye to you and to thank you for tolerating me for more than seven and half years now.
“I assure you, I have deliberately arranged to be as far away from you as possible not because I don’t appreciate the love you’ve shown to me, but because I think I’ve gotten what I have asked and I would rather quietly retire to my hometown.
“Having been a governor, minister and the president twice, I think God has given me an incredible opportunity to serve as your president. And I thank God for that.
“So, please, whoever feels I have done wrong to them, we are all humans. There is no doubt I hurt some people and I wish you will pardon me. And those that think that I have hurt them so much, please, pardon me.”
