According to President Muhammadu Buhari, his children are aware that he is not leaving them anything to inherit and believe they are worth what they perceive themselves to be.
The President made this remark on July 13, 2022, while attending the Sallah homage at the palace of the Emir of Daura in Daura, Katsina State.
Speaking at the palace, Buhari called on parents to inculcate right values in children, including deep fear of God, continuous education, and respect for constituted authorities.
Buhari also encouraged the youths to seek education, not for government jobs, which are unavailable, but to arm themselves with skill and ability to fight poverty and to meet the needs of the 21st Century.
He added that more time should be committed to the coaching of the future leaders, with basic knowledge of moral values.
“I was locked up for more than three years, after leading the country. At that point, I realised and I told my children that your net worth is what is in your head, not what you have acquired in life.
“My focus has always been on training the children to be relevant wherever they find themselves. I told my children, particularly the girls, that they can only get married after getting a first degree.
“They already know that I am not leaving anything for anyone to inherit. My greatest legacy to the children is to ensure they are properly educated,” he said in a statement issued by his spokesman, Garba Shehu.
The president also said children should be guided and taught history so as not to find it hard to be patriotic, responsible, and respectful. He added that “whoever does not have a good sense of history will easily make mistakes”.
Buhari promised the Emir that he would henceforth visit him regularly. He said his long absence at the monarch’s palace was due to the demands of his office.
“This is the longest I have been away from home. In fact, the Emir took to the court of public opinion at the prayer ground, when he openly told everyone that I had not visited Daura for close to a year,” he said.
The president also urged Nigerians to make sacrifices to move the country forward.
Reacting, the Emir thanked the President for the infrastructural and institutional developments in the state, saying generations will remember and remain grateful to him.