Former First Lady Aisha Buhari has provided a rare glimpse into her future following the death of her husband, Muhammadu Buhari, confirming her refusal to remarry in a newly launched biography.
Speaking to author Dr Charles Omole for the 600-page book, ‘From Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari’, unveiled in Abuja on Monday, Mrs. Buhari framed her choice as a matter of practicality rather than moral conviction.
The book states: “She will not remarry, she says, almost with a shrug… It is not a moral pronouncement so much as a pragmatic one: she has grandchildren; one husband was enough.”
The account frames her stance as a rejection of cultural expectations often placed on widows.
It states: “In a culture that sometimes reads remarriage as betrayal or saintliness, her answer refuses both scripts. It is simply a woman naming the contours of her future.”
Outlining the next chapter of her life, the former First Lady plans a shift towards a quieter, more personal focus, prioritising her family and charitable work.
She noted that her future involves spending time with grandchildren so they remember her “not as a moving figure behind tinted glass but as a presence in their childhood rooms;” running the Aisha Buhari Foundation and operating the cardiovascular and medical centre in Kano, which has already completed “over two hundred procedures;” and also taking holidays with friends and associates, embracing a “domestic and cosmopolitan” life.
The book states: “For Aisha Buhari, her marriage served as both a refuge and a trial. It gave her a platform to voice her opinions, only to punish her for doing so.”
The Buharis were married for 35 years, from December 2, 1989, until the former President’s death in July 2025. They had five children together.