By Austine Agbo Emmanuel, Kaduna
Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, has commended the leadership legacy of former President Muhammadu Buhari, describing his tenure as one that laid the structural foundation for sustainable national development across key sectors.
Mustapha delivered the remarks on Tuesday during the public presentation of According to the President, a new book authored by presidential aide Garba Shehu, at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja.
Speaking on the theme, President Muhammadu Buhari’s Contribution to National Development, the former SGF chronicled Buhari’s evolution from his military service and stewardship in the petroleum sector to his time as a two-term democratic president.
He noted that Buhari’s legacy went beyond high-profile projects, arguing that the former president focused on institutional reforms and governance systems that could outlast individual political tenures.
“President Buhari governed with duty rather than drama. He was driven by principles, not applause,” Mustapha said.
He listed key interventions during the Buhari administration, such as the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the expansion of national infrastructure, military modernisation efforts, and the introduction of social welfare programmes like the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP).
Mustapha also pointed to Buhari-era reforms in agriculture, education, power, and the digital economy, adding that these were all part of a coordinated and deliberate push for inclusive national growth.
Recalling his experience as chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Mustapha praised the government’s pandemic response, stating that it demonstrated Nigeria’s capacity for evidence-based policymaking and inter-agency collaboration under extreme pressure.
He also cited long-term strategic frameworks initiated under Buhari, including the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), Nigeria Agenda 2050, and the Medium-Term National Development Plan (2021–2025), as evidence of forward planning aimed at lasting impact.
Turning to the present administration, Mustapha applauded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for building on the governance reforms of his predecessor and deepening institutional reforms in critical areas.
“President Tinubu’s administration has not only retained the momentum of governance reforms but has also introduced bold initiatives that deepen institutional credibility and fiscal sustainability,” he stated.
He pointed to the transformation of the Central Delivery Coordination Unit into the Central Results Delivery and Coordination Unit, as well as the ongoing implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan (FCSSIP), as examples of this continuity.
Mustapha further cited the Supreme Court’s 2024 decision affirming financial autonomy for local governments as a validation of Buhari’s Executive Order 10, which had sought to strengthen the independence of local councils by enabling direct funding.
He also praised Tinubu’s stance on electricity federalism and his push for harmonised tax reforms, describing them as “forward-looking consolidations” of the reformist direction set under Buhari.
“The baton of leadership has passed, but the relay of reform continues. President Tinubu has shown that reform is not a one-off initiative, but a national discipline that must evolve with consistency,” Mustapha said.
He called on Nigerians to regard governance as a shared and generational duty, not as episodic spectacle, and described According to the President as a timely reflection on Buhari’s leadership temperament, policy decisions, and contributions to nation-building.