The Presidency on Wednesday explained that like a good wine, President Muhammadu Buhari who will clock 73 in December, gets better with age.The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, stated this in a statement in Abuja.
He was reacting to a statement credited to Buhari during an audience he granted Nigerians resident in South Africa that his age would limit his performance as the President of the country.
Buhari had told the gathering that, “I wish I became Head of State when I was a governor. Now at 72, there is a limit to what I can do.”
The statement read in part, “The President, who had served as a military governor of the then North-Eastern State at 33 years old, declared, ‘I wish I became Head of State when I was a governor. Now at 72, there is a limit to what I can do.’ The above comments have been reported by some newspapers to mean that the President was saying he was too old to cope with the demands of his office. Far from it. As the saying goes, ‘old wines are tasty’ and the President Buhari we have today is a man, like old wine, that has got tastier.
“At 72, yes, he can’t be called a youth, but he has in quantum the wisdom, the patience, temperance and forbearance that age brings. And all these virtues he has brought to the Presidency, to make a difference in our national life.The President assured the Nigerian community in South Africa that his administration would make a positive impact on the country. And that he would do.