The President was addressing to FCT people, led by Minister Mohammed Musa Bello, who paid him the traditional Christmas Day homage.

 
At the final Christmas Day observance with the FCT community, which included political, traditional, and religious leaders, women and youth organisations, and public officials, the president reaffirmed that he will return to Daura, Katsina State, his birthplace, at the conclusion of his term.

He added that he chose not to make Abuja his permanent residence in order to offer his successor unfettered authority over government operations and administration.

The President assured members of the FCT community that he has not constructed a new home in Daura or anyplace else, and that he intends to dwell in the same residence for many years.

President Buhari also took the opportunity to praise the FCT Minister, noting that he has held the cabinet position for so long due to his integrity and diligence.

The President remarked that he is aware that the office of the Minister of the FCT is overburdened with requests for land allocation from highly placed Nigerians, who frequently dispose of their land allocations for financial gain and other purposes.

He related a story in which a close friend advised him to petition the FCT Minister for a piece of land, which he would then sell and use the proceeds to marry another woman.

I was astounded by the priorities of some individuals who require a piece of land not to develop it, but to sell it and marry a second wife. I don't know how the minister manages to deal with individuals who take such matters so seriously. And I estimate that approximately 45 percent of individuals who were allotted land in the FCT sold it and did not develop it in accordance with the set criteria (the master plan).

President Buhari commended Nigerians for their support of his administration, recalling that during electioneering campaigns preceding the 2015 and 2019 elections, he travelled the length and breadth of the country to seek their support.

In his remarks, the FCT Minister expressed his happiness that the Christmas tribute had resumed after a two-year hiatus owing to the COVID-19 epidemic.

He beseeched the Supreme Being to grant the president a peaceful and healthy retirement.

Rev. Stephen Panyan, Vice Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), FCT, congratulated the President for trying his best for the country and prayed that he will leave Nigeria a legacy of fairness, justice, inclusion, and management of diversity.

Speaking on behalf of CAN National President Archbishop Daniel Okoh, the religious leader reassured the president of the Christian community's support for all of his initiatives to advance and flourish Nigeria.

"As the end of your administration approaches, we want to tell you that the Christian community will continue to completely support you. We trust that God will bless your efforts and that your desire to alleviate the suffering of the residents of this nation will bear fruit."

The leader of the CAN prayed, "May the Lord bless your labour and bring to fruition your incredibly lofty aspirations."

Noting that the Christian community has not given up on Nigeria, Panyan urged the President to continue doing his hardest for the country and its population, whom he "loves so much," while relying on divine intervention.

Smart Adeyemi, Chairman of the Senate Committee on the FCT and Senator for Kogi West, remarked that religious harmony has prevailed in the nation's capital for the past seven and a half years as a result of President Buhari's effective leadership.

He also praised the president's record with regard to press freedom, freedom of expression, and human rights.

In the midst of a barrage of allegations of this government, he highlighted that the President has never ordered the arrest, imprisonment, or intimidation of any journalist or political opponent.

Adeyemi appealed to the President to use his good offices to ensure fairness and equity in the process of electing the next governor of Kogi State, as was seen in the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primaries that produced Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Senator Kashim Shettima as candidates.