Nigeria, July 30 -- Major Gen. Muhammadu Buhari was a bundle of contradictions. He was unquestionably Nigeria's most divisive leader during his lifetime. His worldview was always one of north versus south, Fulanis vs other Nigerians, and Muslims vs Christians, as long as it served his narrow goal. In the quest for the presidency of a democratic Nigeria, he pretended to be a born-again personality.

In the North, youths of all shades trooped out in Kano, Kaduna, Zaria, Katsina, and even his hometown of Daura, among other cities, in exuberant celebration of the exit of a man who quadrupled poverty in the region. In the South West, most Yorubas congregated in their various clubs to boisterously celebrate the death of Nigeria's most incompete...