‘Buhari made other room joke on the wrong stage’ – Aisha

Former First Lady Aisha Buhari has said late former President Muhammadu Buhari made the controversial “other room” comment on the wrong stage.

According to Mrs Buhari, remarks such as that one often fail to translate well on the international stage.

Her views on the statement are contained in a newly released biography of the former president titled ‘From Soldier to Statesman: The Legacy of Muhammadu Buhari’, written by Charles Omole.

Excerpts of the book read: “The line, ‘she belongs to my kitchen…and the other room’ took on a life of its own after it was uttered in Germany, standing next to Angela Merkel.

“Aisha Buhari responds with the nonchalance of someone familiar with both the man and the soldier’s tendency toward gallows humor.

“We laughed about it,’ she says. Yet she also admits it was the wrong venue for such a joke.

“In the global square, irony travels badly,’ the book states. “Back home, she was confronted with questions from international colleagues who interpreted the quip as official policy.

“Her reply was direct: she knows her place, and so does he. They argued at times over the distance between the nation he envisioned and the administration he oversaw.

“But they never argued about whether she belonged in spaces where power is exercised. She simply walked in.”