Former presidential spokesperson Garba Shehu has revealed that ex-President Muhammadu Buhari rejected a proposed ₦10 million food budget during his time in office, opting instead for a modest diet.
Gatekeepers News reports that Shehu made the revelation in his new memoir, “According to the President: Lessons from a Presidential Spokesperson’s Experience”, launched in Abuja on Tuesday.
The book offers firsthand insights from Shehu’s eight-year service under Buhari, highlighting the former president’s frugality and personal values.
According to Shehu, shortly after Buhari assumed office in 2015, he was informed that the food budget for the State House, covering meals for the president, vice president, guest accommodations, and official functions, needed to be increased to ₦10 million.
He said, “ When they told him N10 million was needed, he screamed and demanded it be reduced.”
“Look at my table, what do l eat? How much does it cost?”
Shehu described Buhari’s meals as extremely simple and reflective of the everyday Nigerian diet.
He said, “ Regarding his simple lifestyle, as president, most of the things he ate were very basic food that is recognisable and associated with and consumed by the lower strata of the Nigerian society: tuwo (dough-like dishes made from grains), pap, akara (bean cake), beans, wheat, plenty of salads, poultry and mutton. He ate healthily.”
Shehu also recounted Buhari’s resistance to extravagant spending in other areas. Early in his presidency, Nebolisa Emodi, then Permanent Secretary of the State House, briefed Buhari that ₦400 million had been released to purchase five custom-made Mercedes-Benz vehicles, a plan approved in the final days of the Jonathan administration.
But Buhari was not interested. “ What’s wrong with the cars left by my predecessor?’ he asked. He insisted they were still good enough.”
The president directed Emodi to slash operational costs and eliminate dependence on “Presidential Intervention Funds,” insisting all State House expenses remain within the approved budget. He continued using former President Jonathan’s official vehicles until one eventually broke down en route to the airport.
Shehu’s memoir paints Buhari as a leader who imposed strict financial discipline on the presidency and maintained tight control over public funds.
He said the former president spent the first few months of his administration engaging with permanent secretaries and agency heads to fully grasp the nation’s challenges. This decision, according to Shehu, contributed to the delay in appointing ministers, a move that sparked public criticism at the time.
In one instance, Shehu recounted that during Buhari’s medical leave while Yemi Osinbajo was acting president certain officials (not Osinbajo) approached the late Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, requesting a security vote. But Kyari turned them down.
He said, “Malam Abba told them that the president kept nothing to that.”
