After an eight-day official visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, where he also underwent the Umrah (Lesser Hajj), President Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retired) has now returned to Abuja.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria, the Nigerian president left Saudi Arabia on Wednesday by way of the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
According to NAN, senior members of the Nigerian Embassy in the Kingdom’s personnel as well as Saudi government representatives, traditional and spiritual leaders from Nigeria, and others were present at the airport to tell the president farewell.
The president arrived to the Grand Mosque in Makkah on Thursday morning from Madinah and successfully completed Umrah ceremonies under heavy security.
According to NAN, a team from the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Grand Mosque led the president and members of his entourage, as well as some traditional and religious leaders from the six geopolitical zones of the country, in the conduct of the ceremonies.
Before traveling to Makkah for the Umrah, the Nigerian leader spent Tuesday and Wednesday in Madinah touring several important religious sites.
The governors of Borno and Yobe states, among other government officials, provided the president with updates on events at home.
President Buhari also invited certain traditional and religious leaders to Iftar dinner (breaking of fast) while he was in Makkah.
Alhaji Ado Bayero and Alhaji Nasiru Bayero, the emirs of Kano and Bichi in Kano State, both addressed after the event and agreed that only a unified nation could advance and achieve its objectives.
The Aso Rock Villa’s Chief Imam, Malam Abubakar Sulaiman, Sheikh Al-Kanawi Alhassan Ahmed, Dr. Bashir Umar, Muhammad Kamaluddeen Lemu, and Nuruddeen Danesi Asunogie were among the religious figures present.
Alhaji Ibrahim Kasuwar Magani, Sheikh Haroun Ogbonnia Ajah, Prof. Shehu Galadanchi, Alhaji Abdulrasheed Adiatu, and Alhaji Bala Lau were the other members.
The president had also met with Dr. Aliru Momoh, Rilwan Adamu Sulaiman, Akadiri Saliu Momoh, Abdulfatah Chimaeze Emetumah, Fatima Ijeoma Emetumah, and Alhaji Isa Sanusi Bayero. He had also spoken with the Emir of Lafia, Justice Sidi Mamman Bage, and the Otaru of Auchi.
Prayers were said for the country’s stability, the President’s peaceful conclusion of his or her tenure, and the success of the incoming administration.
The Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah was previously visited by President Buhari, who offered prayers there.
In Makkah, he also visited with Alhaji Aminu Dantata, a senior statesman, philanthropist, and patriarch of the Dantata family, and once more conveyed his condolences for the passing of his wife, Hajiya Rabi Dantata.
According to NAN, the Kano-based businessman lost his wife, Rabi Dantata, on April 9 at a Saudi Arabian hospital.
