Lagos Muhammadu Buhari, who will be sworn in on
Friday as Nigeria's new president, is a one-time coup leader who once
ruled Africa's most populous nation with an iron fist.
But he has
undergone a remarkable transformation from military general to as he
calls it a "converted democrat" whom many see as the solution to
Nigeria's many problems.
His election victory over President
Goodluck Jonathan two months ago was the first time power had changed
hands to an opposition party at the ballot box in Nigeria's turbulent
political history.
Yet commentators say he will still need to delve
into his army past to tackle rampant corruption, Boko Haram security
concerns and economic troubles over the next four years.
"For him to
succeed in tackling these knotty problems, he will need to behave like
a dictator in spite of the constitution, ignore criticisms and keep
abay sycophants," said one former army officer who took part in
Nigeria's first military coup in 1966.
"This is the time for him to
bear his fangs against graft," added social commentator Tokede
Williams. "A man called upon to be a hawk must catch chickens."
Buhari,
72, has already pledged the corrupt and corruption will have no part in
his administration and that he intends to lead by example.
Unusually
for a Nigerian leader, he did not accumulate much in the way of spoils
during his 20 months in charge of a military regime from December 1983.
The
devout Muslim, who has had to fend off claims from opponents that he is
a religious zealot, is known to have only one simple bungalow in Daura,
his home town in the northern state of Katsina.
He also took out a
bank loan to pay the 27.5-million-naira ($136,000, 123,000 euro) fee
just to contest for the presidential ticket for his All Progressives
Congress (APC) party.
In office, his conduct will be closely watched
for signs of excesses from his previous time in power that notably saw
a crackdown on "indiscipline" and corruption.
Critics of the regime
and political opponents were thrown in jail, including the Afro-beat
music legend Fela Kuti, who was known for his outspoken lyrics.
Umaru
Dikko, a former minister to the elected president Shehu Shagari that he
overthrew, was found drugged in a crate on a plane at Stansted Airport,
in an attempt to smuggle him back to Nigeria.
Critics of Buhari,
particularly outgoing President Goodluck Jonathan's Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP), even suggested: "Once a tyrant, always a tyrant."
"At
his age, it is always difficult for somebody to change his normal way
of life overnight. A leopard doesn't change his spots suddenly," said
one lawyer close to the incoming administration.
"However it all
depends on those guiding him in office. Buhari is used to the military
command structure and the tendency to be autocratic will always be
there."
Softly spoken Buhari himself has rejected the description of
"dictator" and vowed to operate "under democratic rules", without
conducting a witch-hunt against the previous administration.
"Let's
put the past behind us, especially the recent past. We must forget our
old battles and past grievances and forge ahead," he said in his
acceptance speech on April 2.
This month, he announced he would no longer be referred to as "General Buhari".
Buhari's previous time in power ended in a bloodless barracks coup led by Ibrahim Babangida in August 1985.
He
slipped out of public life but returned as head of a government agency,
the Petroleum Trust Fund, bankrolling development projects with
additional revenue from oil sales.
At the agency, he again showed an autocratic but effective style.
"He
is not very communicative, he is reticent but quite knowledgeable
without flaunting it," said Ayo Banjoko, a Lagos-based political
analyst.
"He is imbued with a messianic zeal. He has a rigid and
intransigent disposition and he believes this country must and should
be purged of its ills, especially corruption."
Buhari's military
background and previous role as a northeastern governor have seen him
viewed as best-placed to tackle the Boko Haram insurgency that has
killed 15,000 since 2009.
Last July, he narrowly escaped death after
a suicide bombing on his car as it travelled through the northern city
of Kaduna. Many blamed the militants after he had previously criticised
the group.
Buhari is divorced from his first wife Safinatu, with
whom he had five children, and married Aisha, 44, in 1989. They also
have five children together.
AFP
