Speak no ill of the dead, says an ancient aphorism. That maxim was broadly held sway in Nigeria last week as friends and foes alike paid glowing tribute to former President Muhammadu Buhari, who died in a London clinic on Sunday, July 13, aged 82. Buhari was one of the most divisive and pilloried leaders in Nigerian history. In life, he was loved and hated in equal measure. But last week, his death united the country in deep mourning for a leader whose place in Nigerian history, controversial as it might be, is firmly secured.