Renowned columnist and media scholar Farooq Kperogi has publicly apologized to former First Lady Aisha Buhari, admitting to a “cruel lapse in judgment” following a controversial Facebook post about the status of her marriage.
Kperogi’s July 16 post, titled “Aisha Buhari, Divorce, and Forgiveness Claim,” had suggested that Mrs. Buhari’s marriage to late President Muhammadu Buhari had encountered serious personal strain — a revelation that has since sparked outrage and speculation.
In a heartfelt statement issued Sunday, Kperogi acknowledged the emotional distress the post caused the former First Lady and her close associates.
“Although I absolutely should have foreseen it, I honestly didn’t anticipate the profoundly painful consequences… It’s one of the worst and cruelest lapses of judgment I have ever committed in my life,” he wrote.
The U.S.-based professor said the claim was based on information from a “source whose integrity is unimpeachable,” but conceded that making it public was a grave error.
“Going public with the information was an error on my part, as not every well-sourced information is for public consumption,” he said.
Kperogi also revealed that Alhaji Sani Zorro, former Senior Special Assistant to the First Lady on Public Affairs, had personally reached out to him to challenge the accuracy of the post and conveyed Mrs. Buhari’s insistence that her marriage remained intact until President Buhari’s death.
“I will not contest the particulars and veracity of the information with Alhaji Sani… Clearly, Mrs. Buhari herself has the ultimate authority and right to define the status of her marriage… Her truth should be respected as supreme,” he noted.
Emphasizing that his action was not driven by malice, Kperogi admitted that the pain caused far outweighed any intent or context behind the disclosure.
“I sincerely did not intend to harm Mrs. Buhari or execute any personal vendetta,” he wrote.
“To Mrs. Aisha Buhari, I offer my heartfelt and unreserved apology for the needless and deeply regrettable hurt I have caused. I am truly sorry.”
