Who is Muhammadu Buhari? the ‘first Nigerian opposition candidate to defeat an incumbent’

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has been re-elected for a second four-year term, but who is he? A former soldier, Mr Buhari led a military regime for 20 months in the 1980s and was first elected president in 2015, becoming the first opposition candidate to defeat an incumbent and win the presidency.

His record in office is mixed. Mr Buhari’s critics say that the very attributes that won over voters four years ago – his strictness and inflexibility – have emerged as liabilities. They accuse him of autocratic leanings as well as a disastrous tendency towards inaction.

Mr Buhari’s supporters can argue that he has largely delivered on campaign pledges such as tackling corruption and cracking down on Boko Haram. But they may struggle to point to concrete achievements in other fields, such as fixing the economy.

The 76-year-old defeated his main rival, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, with a margin of just under four million votes.

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