First Ladies also deserve retirement privileges – Aisha Buhari

Nigeria’s outgoing First Lady, Aisha Buhari, says wives of former Presidents deserve to enjoy the same treatment and privileges their husbands enjoy after vacating office.

Aisha said this on Friday at a book launch (The Journey of a Military Wife) in Abuja authored by President of the Defence and Police Officers’ Wives Association (DEPOWA), Vickie Anwuli Irabor.

Information Nigeria reports that former Presidents enjoy some benefits such as pensions, allowances, vehicles, cars, sponsored foreign trips, and medical treatments, among others after exiting office.

According to the wife of the President, First Ladies deserve these privileges just like their husbands because they also feel the pressure of leading the country and also suffer criticisms from Nigerians.

Explaining why the privileges should be extended to first ladies, she said, “I married my husband as the wife of a former president. I am going in a few days as a wife of a former president a second time.

“They should consider us as former first ladies. They should incorporate the first ladies, give us some privileges that we deserve as first ladies, not just the former presidents”.

Commending Irabor for the book, the First Lady said, “It is a factual, emotional book that will help officers’ wives navigate their lives noting, “It underscores women as agents of stability for the nation as the nation battled insurgency and other security challenges.

“It’s a guide and reference for military wives, and need for better support for military widows” pointing out that “insights from the book will help readers appreciate the challenges of of the military family.”