… Confirms Keeping Them Honest Exclusive That Story Was A Lie
By Peter Salami
Barely three days after Keeping Them Honest Daily rubbished his claims in a detailed report, Farooq Kperogi has eaten humble pie and apologised to former First Lady, Aisha Buhari, over his viral Facebook post suggesting she had divorced her husband, the late President Muhammadu Buhari, before his death.
In a remorseful statement titled “Apology to Aisha Buhari”, the U.S.-based professor and columnist admitted that publishing the story was a serious lapse in judgement. He said it had caused needless hurt to Mrs. Buhari and her loved ones.
“I shouldn’t have shared it publicly. Period,” Kperogi wrote on his Facebook page yesterday. “Doing so violated every moral and ethical principle I cherish and uphold.”
Kperogi’s climbdown came after Keeping Them Honest Daily published an exclusive report where a top aide of the late president dismissed the divorce rumour as “hogwash” and “utter nonsense”. The aide, who preferred not to be named, said he had seen the former First Lady personally attend to Buhari on multiple occasions, including during a private visit in March 2025.
“She was right there with him. In fact, she personally served the suya we ate. So how can somebody now come and say they were divorced? That one na lie wey no get leg,” the aide had said humourously.
Kperogi had claimed that Aisha Buhari reverted to her maiden name, kept her distance after Buhari left office, and only travelled to London during his final illness after much persuasion. He used these points to argue that the couple had quietly parted ways long before the former president passed on.
But after a call from Alhaji Sani Zorro, former Senior Special Assistant on Public Affairs to the First Lady, Kperogi appeared to backtrack. “I will not contest the particulars and veracity of the information with Alhaji Sani who conveyed the former First Lady’s position that her marriage was intact,” he stated.
He claimed that his source was credible and meant well, but that he was wrong to make the information public. “Not every well-sourced information is for public consumption,” he wrote. “It shows I am only human —an imperfect human.”
The apology comes after Keeping Them Honest Daily questioned the foundation of his story and provided eyewitness accounts and public records indicating that the couple remained together until the end. The paper also reminded readers that while the Buhari marriage had its public ups and downs, there was never any official indication of a separation, let alone a divorce.
Our source had also questioned Kperogi’s motives and methods, describing the divorce claim as a “new low” in anti-Buhari commentary. “This is not journalism. It is gossip presented as fact,” he said in the original report.
Observers say Kperogi’s apology is rare in Nigeria’s media space, where retractions are not common. But some believe it reflects the weight of the evidence and the hurt caused by the false report.
“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,” Kperogi wrote.
As at the time of this report, Mrs. Buhari had not made any public comment. However, sources close to the family say she is aware of the apology and has chosen to remain focused on private posthumous activities in honour of her late husband.