Buhari loses two family members

Halima Dauda, niece to President Muhammadu Buhari and mother of his personal assistant, Mohammed Sabi’u Tunde, has died at 56.

She was younger sister to Buhari’s close associate and uncle, Mamman Daura.

This brings to two members of the president’s extended family that died in two days.

Garba Shehu, senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday.

He said Dauda was buried in Daura, Katsina state, on Saturday morning.

She left behind 10 children, four of them male, including Sabiu, and six female.

According to Shehu, the burial was attended by a federal government delegation led by Abba Kyari, chief of staff to the president.

Others on the team were Hadi Sirika, minister of state of aviation; Isma’ila Isa and Sayyu Dantata, both of them businessmen; Sarki Abba, Ya’u Darazo and Garba Shehu, aides of the president; Ahmed Rufa’i Abubakar, director-general of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Jalal Arabi, permanent secretary, state house; and Lawal Kazaure, state chief of protocol.

The Buhari family had earlier buried Ai’sha Mamman on Friday. She was the wife of Mamman, the president’s older brother.

“Receiving condolences, Malam Mamman on behalf of the family and the Emir, Alhaji Umar Faruk for the people of Daura Emirate thanked God for the lives of the deceased and all the visitors for sharing the moment of grief with them,” the statement said.

Editor’s note: This story has been corrected over errors of fact.