Muhammadu Buhari, who left office in 2023 after serving two terms, made Nigerian political history as the first opposition candidate to defeat a sitting president at the ballot box.

Buhari died at a clinic in London at the age of 82, his former spokesman, Garba Shehu, said in a post on social media.

Buhari’s tenure was dogged by health rumours.

He governed Nigeria with a strong hand as a military ruler in the 1980s before reinventing himself as a “converted democrat” to be elected as president decades later.

The rake-thin 82-year-old Muslim from the far north of Africa’s most populous nation made political history as the first opposition candidate to defeat a sitting leader at the ballot box in 2015.

He unseated then-incumbent Goodluck Jonathan on a vow to crack down on Nigeria’s rampant corruption and end an insurgency by Boko Haram jihadists, going on to claim re-election in 2019.

Buhari’s initial win—after three failed attempts in a country where re-election for the incumbent had been taken for granted—was seen as a rare opportunity for Nigeria to change course.

But his time at the helm failed to halt graft and insecurity, and was further dogged by economic woes, ill-health and the heavy-handed treatment of protesters.

Critics accused him of nepotism, appointing his northern kinsmen to sensitive government posts which heightened suspicion and rancour in a country where regional rivalry between the north and the south is high.

‘Baba go slow’

Buhari’s first taste of power came in 1983 when he spearheaded a coup that overthrew the democratically elected president Shehu Shagari.

His government then launched a “War Against Indiscipline” as it cracked down hard on dissent and jailed what it said were corrupt politicians and businessmen.

But after just 20 months in power Buhari himself was ousted by another of the military takeovers that repeatedly plagued Nigeria until its return to democratic rule in 1999.

Unusually for a Nigerian leader, Buhari did not accumulate much wealth during his first time in charge, earning a reputation for a modest lifestyle.

While in power as a democratically elected leader, opponents dubbed him “Baba go slow” as he delayed naming a government, and he faced criticism for relying on a small group of advisors.

There was widespread speculation over his health when he spent months being treated for an unspecified ailment in London in 2017.

Failed to turn Nigeria around

Nigeria, until recently Africa’s largest economy and currently its largest oil producer, went through a recession in 2016-17 and was struggling to improve on flagging growth.

Despite what many regarded as poor performance in his first term, Buhari won re-election in 2019, thanks to massive support from his northern turf.

But his tenure in office saw little changes to Nigeria’s huge—and long-standing—problems of corruption, poverty and armed violence.

In 2020 the country was hit in a double-whammy by the coronavirus pandemic and falling crude prices that hammered government finances.

Living conditions for many remained dire through time in office, with tens of millions living in extreme poverty and young people facing crushing unemployment.

Buhari’s anti-corruption posture suffered a dent as a number of ministers who served in his government came under investigation by Nigeria’s anti-graft agency for embezzlement.

On the security front, Buhari declared in December 2015 that Boko Haram’s jihadists—who once tried to blow him up—were “technically” defeated.

But the group and an Islamic State (IS) group affiliated offshoot still stage deadly attacks on both military targets and civilians to this day, some 2 million of who remain displaced.

In the northwest, clashes between rival ethnic groups and attacks by armed gangs saw villages torched and communities forced from their homes.

And Nigeria’s notorious security forces kept up their reputation for abuses during Buhari’s tenure, culminating in the shooting of peaceful protesters in Lagos, the economic capital.

The Nigerian army killed 350 Shiite Muslims from an opposition movement in December 2015, with many gunned down and burned alive according to rights groups.

In October 2020, Buhari faced the largest show of public anger in years as ire over police brutality erupted into widespread street protests known as “End SARS”, initially directed against the Special Anti-Robbery Squad.

The president scrapped the notorious police unit and pledged reforms, but this failed to appease the young crowds and their demands for more sweeping change grew.

As violence flared in a string of cities, officials claimed the protests had been hijacked by criminals.

After a curfew was declared in Lagos, security forces on October 20 opened fire on peaceful demonstrators, sparking further unrest at home and condemnation abroad.

Since leaving office in 2023, Buhari moved to his native Daura. He carried out occasional visits to the city of Kaduna, where he owns a house, and continued taking trips to London for medical checks.