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Tag: IBB

  • IBB: Enduring institution, irrepressible enigma 

    IBB: Enduring institution, irrepressible enigma 

    Thirty-two years after leaving power President Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida has assumed full responsibility for what happened on the June 12th 1993 annulment of Chief MKO Abiola’s presidential election and its attendant consequences.


    He has explained the circumstances under which it happened and has not only acknowledged that Abiola actually won the election but that he was also unfairly robbed of his MANDATE when he and his military regime annuled it.


    What he didn’t say was that if he had not annuled the election those that wanted it aborted would have killed him, key members of his Government, MKO Abiola, MKO’s family and everyone else that opposed them and his Government would have been toppled in a very violent and bloody coup which would have definately led to a long, brutal and protracted civil war.


    IBB has told his side of the story and explained to us what actually transpired. He refused to remain silent, he did not shy away from speaking the truth or refuse to accept responsibility and he did not pass the buck.
    Instead he came clean, displayed immense courage and did the right and proper thing.
    That is what leaders are meant to do and he did it without fear or favour regardless of whose ox was gored. Kudos to him. 
    We need to appreciate this gesture, eschew all bitterness, let go of all our pent up anger, forgive him for what many perceive to be his sins and move on.


    Equally we need to accord him his rightful place in history as one the the greats despite his fallibility. He is after all a mere man, albeit a great one, and not God.


    Only God is free of fault and is infallible and there is not one man that has ever lived, led or ruled that is infallible.

    Read Also: IBB comes clean, but is far from cleansed


    All those insulting and abusing him today for putting the facts and his experiences on record in his book are malevolent, bitter, twisted souls & unenlightened, ignorant, cowards who have no appreciation of history or what this man actually achieved in his 8 years in office or the events that led up to June 12th.


    They only see things in part and are allowing their emotions rather than their heads to rule them. 


    I was in the NADECO trenches during that difficult time and like many others paid my dues too but I can say that outside of the June 12th matter IBB did more for Nigeria than virtually any other President or Head of State.


    He left power 32 years ago & yet every single living former Nigerian President and Head of State bar President Muhammadu Buhari who he had removed from power in a coup in 1985 attended his book launch in person, and despite all, Buhari actually sent a representative. 


    It was an extraordinary event & I witnessed it with my own eyes because I had the privilege of being invited. 


    If the number of leaders that attended, which included President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, former Head of State General General Yakubu Gowon, former Head of State General Abdulsalami Abubakar, former President and former Head of State President Olusegun Obasanjo, former President Goodluck Jonathan, former President of Ghana Nana Akufo Addo, former President of Sierra Leone President Koroma, former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, former Vice President Sambo & former Vice President Atiku Abubakar did not tell Nigerians the high esteem that the ruling elites have for him then nothing will.


    May God continue to be with this great & inspiring man who has displayed immense discipline, resilience, dignity, self-respect, courage & humility throughout his distinguished life.


    I pray he continues to share his vast reserves of knowledge & wisdom & make his contributions to national development for many years to come.
    Whether his numerous detractors like it or not IBB remains an enigma, an institution & the most consequential Head of State & President in our history.


    No-one can take that from him and we are very proud of him. 
    I wish both him and his family well.


    (FFK)

  • IBB’s confession

    IBB’s confession

    • June 12, like 20-year pounded yam, is still steaming hot, 32 years after

    At last, at long last, Nigeria’s former self-styled President, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, has released his long-awaited autobiography. The book, ‘A Journey In Service,’ was launched at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel  in Abuja on Thursday.

    Babangida was Nigeria’s head of state from August 27, 1985 to August 26, 1993, when he was forced to ‘step aside’, following his government’s annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election.

    Babangida’s tenure as military president witnessed several controversies, the most prominent being the June 12, 1993 election. Babangida and his colleagues apparently underrated the likely consequences of the annulment of that election’s result. He admitted that much in his book.

    Anyway, belated or timely, I congratulate Babangida for the courage he eventually summoned to own up on June 12, even if, as many people have observed, he said nothing new. After all, President Muhammadu Buhari had in 2018 posthumously awarded Bashorun Moshood Kashimawo Abiola, the acclaimed winner of the election, the highest national honour for heads of state or presidents in Nigeria, the Grand Commander of the Federal Republic; an affirmation of sort, of Abiola’s victory in the election.

     Indeed, IBB described the annulment of the election as an “accident of history.”

    The truth of the matter is that in governments all over the world there are several dark deeds or ‘accidents of history’. Many things happened in government that the people only got clues to years after the occurrences, or sometimes long after the dramatis personae have passed on. Perhaps June 12 has joined the league of such events in Nigeria.

    IBB’s affirmation of Abiola’s victory is key because he was at the saddle at the time the election was held. Perhaps the only new dimension that Babangida introduced in his book is to mention General Sani Abacha as a critical factor in the annulment.

    “Unfortunately, the forces gathered against him after the June 12 elections were so formidable that I was convinced that if he became President, he would be quickly eliminated by the same very forces who pretended to be his friends,” IBB said.

    Read Also: IBB comes clean, but is far from cleansed

    He added: “Although I am on record to have stated after the election that Abiola may not have won the election, upon deeper reflection and a closer examination of all the available facts, particularly the detailed election results…there was no doubt that MKO Abiola won the June 12 election.”

    Not done, Babangida continued: “Upon closer examination of the original collated figures from the 110,000 polling booths nationwide, it was clear that he satisfied the two main constitutional requirements for winning the presidential elections, mainly majority votes and geographical spread, having obtained 8,128,720 votes against Tofa’s 5,848,247 votes and securing the mandatory one-third of the votes cast in 28 states of the federation, including Abuja.”

    While the more than N17 billion that was realised at the occasion was also significant, I think the fact that he has been able to empty his mind of the heavy burden of his involvement in the annulment of the result of the election  would be more significant to him than the billions.  I want to believe that, by now, Babangida would have realised, like King Solomon in the Bible, that “vanity upon vanity, all is vanity.” That no position is permanent.

     Before his confession, I had always remembered with awe the existence of God Almighty whenever people visited Babangida in his Minna mansion and the man could only receive them sitting down.

     This was the same IBB that radiculopathy did not condemn to a wheel chair. The Babangida that once told Nigerians that they were not only in government, they were also in power. The same Babangida that was bouncing on his legs when he was justifying the annulment of the election on national television a few days after, as if he was on something on that occasion.

    Alhamdulillahi indeed.

    As ‘A Journey In Service’  was being launched on Thursday, I remembered a book that myself and some of my friends were supposed to write on Babangida some years back. If my memory is not failing me, I think the title  was ‘IBB: The one they all call Oga’. There was also a documentary side that was supposed to be handled by another team. Somehow, the idea died. Even if that book had been written, it wouldn’t have carried the same weight as something on June 12 coming straight from the horse’s mouth.

    But I was the first person to opt out of the arrangement. I could not imagine  working for Babangida, the man who proscribed ‘The Punch’ where at a point during the June 12 struggle I was editor. Between Babangida and Abacha, ‘The Punch’ and two other prominent national dailies were proscribed for about 15 months!

    So, on the first day of our formal meeting on the book project at a friend’s office here in Lagos, I announced to the other team members — Olu Awogbemila, Bolade Opaleye and the team leader (name withheld), I think we were just four; that I was not interested in the project. It was as if we had planned it. But we are all long-time friends and what happened after I opted out was not surprising. Awogbemila and Opaleye too said they had thought it over and again and came to the conclusion that they could also not participate. Apparently on June 12 we all stood.

    Apparently too, the team leader, as the main man, could not ‘chicken out’ and he eventually went to Minna, Niger State, to meet Babangida in connection with the project. We were supposed to go together. I remember him saying the man would really have loved to meet me when he told him that a former editor of ‘The Punch’ was in the team. Trust IBB, he was generous to a fault. But if he had ‘settled’ me for the pains of proscription then, how would that have affected the other workers that went on forced holiday without pay as a result of the proscription? I said all of these in my tribute to Maryam Babangida, IBB’s wife when she died in December 2009.

    It is auspicious at a time like this to recount some of these incidents so that some other people who felt IBB’s apology is belated would know that many other people had their own pangs during the June 12 struggle and even after. Yet, they have moved on, knowing the best they could get from Babangida was the apology.

    I was picked up from the sick bed at Holy Trinity Hospital in Ikeja, Lagos, straight to the State Security Service’s (SSS) office in Shangisha, Lagos, over June 12. I also had some days with the police. My predecessor, Bola Bolawole, was detained in his office for about five days. I can’t remember the number of times I had to tuck out my shirt and throw my tie away just to evade arrest right on our premises. Anything could have happened in those days when soldiers could kill and go. Even if we had died somewhere along the other mines we had to tread at the time, it would not have changed anything whether our relatives decide to forgive Babangida or not, now that he has apologised. If multitudes die on Saturday, Christians who go to church on Sunday would still sing songs of praise and thanksgiving to God.

    But this is not to say that critics who feel Babangida’s apology is not enough do not have a point. The price we paid for this democracy. The price! The price!!

    Here, one remembers the pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere. I won’t be surprised if the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) that was formed to fight the military out of power express the same sentiment.

    Indeed, I agree with Afenifere that “However, this long-overdue confession cannot exonerate Babangida and his associates from the monumental betrayal inflicted upon the nation.” And that “It does not restore the lives lost, nor does it atone for the enduring scars of oppression, bloodshed, and the suppression of democracy. The consequences of that reckless annulment remain irreversible.”

    But nothing can.

    Indeed, for me, this is the most crucial aspect of it all. If something is irreversible, what then do we expect the person behind it all to do? Generals these days no longer commit suicide over such matters.

    It is important to note that, before now, many of us have been asking Babangida to say something on June 12, he has not only said something now, he has admitted that he made mistakes and apologised.

    Regrettable as all of the unintended consequences of June 12 were, we just have to accept the irreversibility of certain actions and take life in its strides. As one of my friends would say: eni k’ole sa, o sa; e ni k’o ju t’owo e sile, o ju sile; ki lo tun ku? (You asked a thief to run, he ran; you asked him to drop what he has stolen, he dropped it. Yet, you keep on pursuing him)!

    Nobody can deny the fact that one of the people who fought for this democracy is President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Yet, the tone of his speech at the book launch does not convey that pain or bitterness of harassment, up to the point of being hounded into exile. You may say then it was ‘Sad Asiwaju’; today, as president, he is ‘Happy Asiwaju’! May be.

    But, honestly, I think rather than keep sulking over Babangida’s regret or apology, it is the country’s current leaders who have lessons to learn from the IBB episode. Ours is a country where local government chairmen are kings, governors are emperors and presidents are like next-of-kin to God almighty. Babangida had made a grievous mistake in his handling of the June 12 election. We are not in a position to judge whether he is truly repentant or not. We can only assume he is.

    It is our current leaders that we have to hold accountable more for their actions so they too would not wake up sometimes tomorrow to offer belated apologies for their actions or inactions in government.

    Babangida operated in a military era. Despite that, we gave them close marking. We no longer do that and that is why people that we purportedly elected are getting more brazen with all manner of irresponsible behaviours.

     I want to believe that one of the reasons God has spared IBB’s life till this time is to enable him make some  restitution. Nothing can be done to bring back Abiola or those that were mauled down by soldiers for insisting on the de-annulment of the election from the grave; just as nothing can be done to undo the annulment of the election that Abiola worked hard to win such that he could reclaim his mandate. The apology should do

    What is more? Babangida had said that “The June 12 elections were the most challenging of my life. If I have to do it all over again, I’ll do it differently”. Unfortunately, in such circumstance, there is no second chance. At 83, we can only leave him to his conscience.

  • IBB comes clean, but is far from cleansed

    IBB comes clean, but is far from cleansed

    And whilst still talking about a sense of an ending and the perfect symmetry of historical occurrences, let us for now say one or two things about the gathering of Nigeria’s postcolonial and post-civil war ogbologbo that swarmed inside the capacious bowel of the nation’s premier hotel in Abuja this past Thursday. It was a beautiful mid-February morning. It was a year short of the fiftieth anniversary of the assassination of Murtala Mohammed, the man who willed Abuja into existence from a primeval forest bristling with hard rocks. Virtually, all the surviving military titans from that era were there directly or by proxy, one or two of them now leglessly infirm. Fifty years after they seized power from General Yakubu Gowon, their winning combination was still in place and in power so to speak. The very foundation of Abuja shook with new money and new power. There was hardly any space left for private planes to park.

       There is always something surreal and unnerving about the calm, placid serenity of Abuja. Like an ancient mythical mine, you know that this is a scene of crime. But you also know that it is a site of stupendous and spectacular riches.  Only the deeply criminal can speak to the deeply criminal. Like its Paris counterpart which is known to warehouse about six million dead souls, the Abuja catacomb houses legions of political, economic and military casualties. The survivors go on to lap at the sweet candies of plutocratic wealth and its fragrant bars of pure honey. If a child refuses to die, he must taste bearded meat.

    Read Also: IBB’s ‘Journey in Service’

      This morning, they all thronged the hall to honour and pay compliments to the man who is arguably the most consequential soldier to have ruled post-civil war Nigeria either for good or bad. General Babangida’s charisma, his capacity to attract people and his mesmerizing gifts remain unmatched in Nigeria’s post-civil war political firmament despite being hobbled by old age and sundry ailments. It is hard to imagine the all-powerful Maradona in this state as he came clean and contrite before his abjured compatriots. But judging from some of the scathing and scalding rejoinders, it is obvious that coming clean is not about to cleanse IBB and absolve him of historic responsibility in the conspiracy against Nigeria. It all speaks to the ephemerality of power and its appurtenances. When you have it, use it for the greatest good of the greatest number. Or the infraction against the greatest collection of black souls anywhere in the world will haunt you forever.

  • IBB: I wasn’t afraid of Abacha, only concerned for my safety

    IBB: I wasn’t afraid of Abacha, only concerned for my safety

    • More knocks trail ex-president’s memoirs
    • Ozekhome to Nigerians: Forgive Babangida, let healing begin

    Two children of the late military head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha yesterday rose in fresh defence of their father following unfavourable comments made about him by another ex-military ruler General Ibrahim Babangida in his newly released memoirs, A journey in Service.

    Abacha’s son Sadiq called his father “the man they envied’ while daughter Gumsu described him as “their biggest competition”.

    Human rights lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome however pleaded for forgiveness for Babangida to “let the healing begin.”

    Babangida blames Abacha largely for the annulment of the results of the June 12, 1993 presidential election which he (Babangida) now admits was won by the late Chief Moshood Abiola.

    Besides, he claims that Abacha also plotted to violently overthrow his administration.

    Babangida, who had installed the late Chief Ernest Shenekan as head of an Interim National Government on August 27, 1993 to run the nation’s affairs, denies speculations that there was a pact in place for the late Abacha to succeed him in office.

    “If, as I said earlier, Abacha was a clog in the wheel of the transition to civil rule process and had plotted to remove me as President violently, why didn’t we retire him to forestall the problems that later emerged?” he writes.

    “Was there a pact between Abacha and me that he would succeed me? Was I afraid of him, fearful for my life? Why didn’t we ‘neutralise’ the other known opposition forces to the transition process?

    “Why didn’t we take prompt action against the ABN for interfering with the transition process, in violation of Decree 19, which made it a criminal offence to hinder the transition?

    “The answers to some of these questions are implicit in earlier sections of this chapter. No, there was no pact between Abacha and me.

    “Yes, there were moments when my safety and the safety of all those dear to me were of concern. But the situation was so unstable that any wrong move on my part could have resulted in bloodletting.

    “As I stated above, the military was so factionalised that any move against General Abacha at that time would have, to put it mildly, been problematic. So, I kept hoping (again, naively, it seems now, in retrospect) that Abacha would fall in line and back the transition process.

    “As humans, we have instincts. But we also have the innate ability to override them. In my judgment of Abacha, I allowed my instincts, and painfully so, to take a backseat.”

    Reflecting on his life during the Abacha years as head of state, Babangida describes it as a precarious period for him.

    His words: “The Abacha ascendancy understandably imposed its censorship and limitations on my retirement freedoms. It was a precarious time for me.

    “But my faith in our country’s future and our people’s resilience helped me cope with the stress of the period.

    “I took solace in what I knew about both Nigeria and Gen. Abacha. I was unsure whether Abacha had the political and general wisdom to navigate Nigeria’s treacherous landscape.

    “I was also not sure that Nigerians could stomach Abacha’s shortcomings. It was best to wait and see while keeping my peace.

    Read Also: IBB: civil war darkest moment in Nigeria’s history

    “The rest is now history.”

    He says he was able to regain currency after the restoration of civil rule and the ascendancy of the Obasanjo civilian presidency.

    “I embraced the freedom of expression to which I was entitled as an ordinary citizen in a democratic society.

    “In the political aftermath of the return to civil rule, I unconsciously graduated into a political oracle. I did not ask for it. I did not prepare for that role or have a script.

    “With the benefit of hindsight, I probably would have fared better if, at that early stage, I had set up a ‘Babangida School of Political Mentorship’!

    “Politicians trooped to my residence. My former colleagues who sought relevance under the new democratic dispensation sought my views and advice. Elder statesmen and opinion leaders were all bent on getting my perspective on national issues.”

    You were a better leader, Sadiq says of father

    Sadiq, in a post yesterday on X, said of his father: “The man Abacha—you have always been the one they envied with silent deceit.

    “History shall remember you for being a better leader, no matter how much they try to put you down.

    “As a son, I am most proud of you today. You indeed are the man they wish they were half of.”

    He added, in Hausa: “Duk wanda yayi jifa a kasuwa,” meaning, “whoever throws a stone in the market…”

    Sadiq’s sister, Gumsu, returned to her X handle G_sparking with a post: MAZA!! (Man) Even in death you are their biggest competition. Allah ya maka rahma. Ameen (May God have mercy on you, amen).

    Forgive Babangida his sins, let the wounds heal, Ozekhome begs Nigerians

    Ozekhome, in a statement yesterday, said: “It takes a man with strong guts and balls and a man who has become repentant, born again and has seen the face of God to publicly recant his earlier wrongful deeds and offer public apology to the entire nation.

    “This was no doubt meant to heal gaping wounds and balm wounded and bruised hearts.”

    He hailed Babangida for “having the courage and humility to own up like a man; that everything that happened during the June 12 crisis took place under him as the head of state and the president who was also the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    “I salute him for acknowledging that his government, which actually organised unarguably the freest, fairest and most credible elections in the electoral history of Nigeria when it introduced Option A4 from electoral books that were hitherto unknown to Nigeria or to the world.

    “But unfortunately, regrettably like he now admits, he again turned around to annul the same elections in a way that was most bizarre, curious and unnatural.

    “To me, that he has come out to open up to doing something wrong and egregious to a bleeding nation should be appreciated. I believe that Nigerians should forgive him because to err is human and to forgive is divine (Eph 4:32 ).

    “I personally have now forgiven him because I was also a victim of the June12 crisis. It threw up all manner of challenges to me as a person, where in my very youthful age, in my thirties, I found myself marching on the streets of Lagos every day – from Ikeja Bus Stop roundabout to Ikorodu Road, up to Tejuosho Market; from there to Ojuelegba, Surulere; to Mushin; to Shomolu and Igando, Alimosho.

    “Every day, we were on the streets, protesting the mindless annulment. Some of us were killed in the process; some were lucky enough to escape abroad on self exile. But some of us- very few indeed- refused to flee our dear country. We stayed back.

    “We stared at the military eyeball to eyeball. We challenged authority and spoke truth to power. We challenged impunity and repression. I suffered several detentions across different detention centres.

    “I virtually could not find a means of livelihood for my youthful family because I was profiled, my phones bugged and no briefs were coming in.

    “But I personally forgive him because it takes tons of guts to make public confession of having erred and atone for same as he has now done.

    “It is confession that leads to penance and penance leads to restitution and then forgiveness.

    “If Babagida were to die today, I believe that he will see the face of God because he has prayed God to forgive him, and he has prayed Nigerians to forgive him.

    “Beyond that historic and epochal mistake of the annulment of the June 12 election which constitutes his original sin, let me place it on record that Babagida is one of the greatest presidents that Nigeria ever had in terms of his ingenuity, rulership mantra, ideas for national resurgimento, ideas that contributed greatly to nation-building.

    “These were aside the IMF-induced loans and pills which he introduced and which we again valiantly fought against successfully.

    “Babagida it was who gave birth to the Federal Capital Territory and laid the solid foundation for virtually everything you see there today. His government was peopled by intellectuals and not by half illiterates and quacks. He recognised and used intellects.

    “He was luminous and he built bridges of understanding, friendship and brotherhood across Nigeria. Nigerians, please, accept IBB’s confession and forgive him his sin of annulling the June 12, 1993 elections.

    “Let the wounds heal; let the heart melt; and let the spirit of national triumphalism prevail.”

  • IBB: Coward or valiant?

    IBB: Coward or valiant?

    Title: A Journey in service
    Author: By Ibrahim B Babangida
    Reviewer: Ozolua Uhakheme
    Publisher: BookCraft
    Pagination: 440
    Year: 2025

    Until Thursday February 20, there have been consistent demands by many Nigerians for former military leader, General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (rtd) to share his stories about his service years as a military leader. The demands are not only just and necessary but also expedient to set the records straight, particularly on the annulment of the June 12 presidential election, death of Dele Giwa, privatisation, IMF, SAP, among others.

    But did the 440 page autobiography, A Journey in Service, published by BookCraft, do justice to Nigerians’ expectations in all of these matters?

    Like an appetiser for the readers, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (rtd), a former military leader, writes the foreword to the book.  He highlights among others why Babangida’s book is important. “Given the monumental and historical changes that General Babangida presided over, it is only natural that many Nigerians of different generations would be eager to learn first-hand the motivations…and the reasons behind these far-reaching decisions, and events, some of which shook the nation to its very foundation.”

    The five-part book comprising 13 chapters provides ample opportunities for the author to tell his stories. Expectedly, he provides in the book stories of his early years, which takes two chapters as Part One, followed by Part Two with early military career in chapters 3 and 4.

    But of all the 13 chapters 7 are dedicated to Part Four of the book, which dwells on In the Saddle in Chapters 6 to 12, while

    Part Five focuses on his retirement years.

    Interestingly, IBB is not oblivious of the fact that in the estimation of most Nigerians of older generation, his stewardship will forever be defined by ‘June 12’ on which he expressed regrets. “If I have to do it all over again, I’d do it differently,” according to his account in the book.

    Since he stepped aside as military president over three decades ago, he finds one of the joys and benefits of retirement in the luxury it provides for sober reflection and even remembering and assessing things past.

    “These days, in my spare time, I contemplate more on what could have been in the growth trajectory of our country. Collectively, how could we have made things work better for our country?

    “Was the problem a governance system or a governance style? Should we go back to the British-type parliamentary system of governance and jettison the American-type presidential system, which seems truly expensive?

    “Or is it the case that a Western-type democratic system of government is unsuitable in a developing society like ours? And if so, should we in Africa and the third world be designing a system of government that’s best suited to our needs, driven, as it were, by the age-long African principle of consensus?

    “Or is our problem simply that of leadership, as our renowned writer, Chinua Achebe, once said?” he ponders in Chapter 5 on Murtala Mohammed Years on Page 113 of the book.

    But how well has IBB put these benefits of retirement into effective use of putting the records straight? Lots and lots to find out in the book.

    A peep into A Journey in Service reveals some bulk passing, contradictions (when you recall his annulment speech to Nigerians after the annulment 32 years ago), attempt to buy time till when memories of the annulment would have faded, and when some assumed key opposition members in the Security Council are no more.

    Read Also: NGO condemns N17bn donation at IBB’s book launch, decries out-of-school menace in Nigeria

    Again, his explanation that he was away in Katsina when the annulment of the June 12 election was announced by the Abacha forces appears begging the issue. Does being away in Katsina amount to temporary handover of authority to a junior officer not within the power structure to handle such a national assignment?

    Now, here is his perception and what to expect as reactions from Nigerians: “For those in my generation and those immediately after us, especially the privileged few who have held positions of responsibility, the Nigerian journey is a labour of love, a privilege to serve our patrimony. Even after it ends, its aftermath and consequences remain with us sometimes for life. I embrace this fate with complete confidence and as a patriotic responsibility.

    “Since we left office, the desire to share recollections of my national service days has persisted. Family members have been insistent in their polite reminders. Friends and compatriots have kept asking me to share my recollections.

    “Associates and curious Nigerians have demanded that I tell ‘my side of the story. People have asked that I share the high points of my national journey to benefit posterity.

    “I have granted the most media interviews of all former Nigerian leaders!

    “This book may disappoint those whose eagerness for my memoirs is driven by curiosity about the more dramatic moments of our tenure. This is not a book about finding blame, inventing excuses or whitewashing known facts.

    “I have no separate story to tell solely about the drama of state affairs under my watch. We live in a country where primarily uninformed commentators are often the final judges about events they know little about.

  • I was not afraid of Abacha, only concerned of my safety – IBB

    I was not afraid of Abacha, only concerned of my safety – IBB

    Former Military President General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) said he did not retire late General Sani Abacha for lack of courage but for his safety and that of those dear and close to him.

    He made this revelation in his book – “A Journey in Service” launched on Thursday in Abuja.

    Though Babangida claimed he uncovered plots by Abacha to violently overthrow his administration, he also acknowledged his opposition to the outcome of June 12 election and return to civil rule. 

    He however left him in the military when he “stepped aside” on August 27, 1993, an action many people felt was either taken out of cowardice or a deliberate plan for Abacha to succeed him.

    Speaking on handling Abacha and the fallout of June 12 election Babangida on pages 282 and 293 of his book wrote: “Other fundamental questions have arisen in my handling of General Abacha and the June 12 elections. If, as I said earlier, Abacha was a clog in the wheel of the transition to civil rule process and had plotted to remove me as President violently, why didn’t we retire him to forestall the problems that later emerged? 

    Read Also: IBB: civil war darkest moment in Nigeria’s history

    “Was there a pact between Abacha and me that he would succeed me? Was I afraid of him, fearful for my life? Why didn’t we ‘neutralise’ the other known opposition forces to the transition process? 

    “Why didn’t we take prompt action against the ABN for interfering with the Transition process, in violation of Decree 19, which made it a criminal offence to hinder the transition?

    “The answers to some of these questions are implicit in earlier sections of this chapter. No, there was no pact between Abacha and me. 

    “Yes, there were moments when my safety and the safety of all those dear to me were of concern. But the situation was so unstable that any wrong move on my part could have resulted in bloodletting. 

    “As I stated above, the military was so factionalised that any move against General Abacha at that time would have, to put it mildly, been problematic. So, I kept hoping (again, naively, it seems now, in retrospect) that Abacha would fall in line and back the transition process. 

    “As humans, we have instincts. But we also have the innate ability to override them. In my judgement of Abacha, I allowed my instincts, and painfully so, to take a backseat.”

    Recalling his early days in retirement, the Lord of the Minna Uphill Mansion said the Abacha ascendancy understandably imposed its censorship and limitations on his retirement freedoms. 

    According to him: “It was a precarious time for me, but my faith in our country’s future and our people’s resilience helped me cope with the stress of the period. I took solace in what I knew about both Nigeria and Gen. Abacha. 

    “I was unsure whether Abacha had the political and general wisdom to navigate Nigeria’s treacherous landscape. I was also not sure that Nigerians could stomach Abacha’s shortcomings. It was best to wait and see while keeping my peace. The rest is now history.”

  • IBB: civil war darkest moment in Nigeria’s history

    IBB: civil war darkest moment in Nigeria’s history

    Former Military President Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (IBB) has identified the January 1966 coup and the subsequent counter-coup of July and September of same year as the immediate causes of the 30-month fratricidal Civil War. 

    The war, which  lasted from July 6, 1967 till January 13, 1970, according to IBB, were some of the darkest in the history of Nigeria.

    “The sporadic killings and the tension created by the unrest compelled some 50,000 Igbos to flee northern Nigeria for the eastern region by the end of July 1966.

    But, the build-up to that painful situation began earlier. After the Head of State, General Aguiyi-Ironsi, and Lt-Col. Adekunle Fajuyi were abducted by rampaging soldiers in the early hours of July 29, 1966, in Ibadan and taken away, the country was literally without  a government for three days. 

    Between July 29 and 31, when their whereabouts were unaccounted for, an atmosphere of uncertainty  enveloped the country. 

    “Brigadier Babafemi Ogundipe, then the most senior military officer after Aguiyi-Ironsi and considered in certain quarters as the ‘natural’ successor to him, made a broadcast on the afternoon of July 29, 1966, calling for the cooperation of the public in the government’s ‘effort to restore law and order’ in the country. 

    “In an attempt to further restore calm, Brigadier Ogundipe sent Lt. Colonel Yakubu Gowon to the Ikeja cantonment to appeal to the group of headstrong northern officers led by Lt-Colonel Murtala Muhammed, Majors Shittu Alao, Musa Usman and Captain Joe Garba, who were spoiling for a fight and even toying with the idea of a secession! Those efforts didn’t yield results,” he said. 

    In his autobiography, A Journey of Service, in Chapter 4 titled “Nigerian War and the NDA Teaching Years,”  Babangida recalls that both coups deepened the distrust among ethnic groups in the country, distrust that continues to plague us to this day. 

    According to him, even more fundamentally, those coups led to one of the bloodiest fratricidal conflicts in modern Africa, the thirty-month Nigerian civil war, with devastating consequences that we have never fully recovered from as a country.

    Babangida said the emergence of Lt-Col. Yakubu Gowon as the new Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces marked the beginning of the tension between Gowon and Lt-Col. Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu. 

    Consequently, in an early morning broadcast from Enugu, Ojukwu rejected Gowon’s emergence as Head of State, insisting that in the absence of Aguiyi-Ironsi, the most senior Nigerian Army officer in the person of Brigadier Babafemi Ogundipe, should be Head of State and Commander-in-Chief.

    He said this led to increase in tension across the country, and that eager to restore confidence in the country, Lt-Col. Gowon assembled regional politicians, dubbed Leaders of Thought, to fashion a way forward for the country.

    “Then, he turned his attention to the military, making  a few tactical changes. Those changes were detailed enough to affect younger officers like me. 

    “But Gowon went further. In a move that turned out to be a political masterstroke, in August, he released the leader of the Yorubas, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, from Calabar prison, where he was serving a prison sentence for treason, and secured, in the process, the much-needed support of the Yorubas at that time. 

    “Unfortunately, Gowon’s commitments to the Igbos that their lives were safe in northern Nigeria were unfulfilled.

    “Almost simultaneously with the deliberations of the Leaders of Thought taking place in Lagos, perhaps the most horrific killings of Igbos occurred in different parts of northern Nigeria on September 29, 1966.

    “The killings were frightening. A deluge of refugees swamped eastern Nigeria from practically all parts of Nigeria. Faced with this intolerable situation, Ojukwu, understandably, barred the eastern Nigerian delegation from further attending Gowon’s Peace and Reconciliation Talks in Lagos, insisting that the lives of Igbos outside eastern Nigeria were unsafe.

    The country was locked in a national stalemate until Lt-General “Joseph Arthur Ankrah, who had become Ghana’s Head of State after the overthrow of Kwame Nkrumah, stepped in by suggesting a neutral and safe venue for an actual Reconciliation conference between Ojukwu and the Federal government,” he said noting that  the intervention, seen as the last chance to prevent an all-out war, led to the famous Peace Conference in the southern regional town of Ghana, Aburi, between January 4 and 5, 1967.”

  • How Biafran Ogbunigwe shell nearly killed me during civil war – IBB

    How Biafran Ogbunigwe shell nearly killed me during civil war – IBB

    Former Military President Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (IBB) has recounted a civil war experience that nearly took his life after Command, 82 Battalion, came under heavy bombardment from Biafran forces on March 27, 1969.

    Babangida said he was nearly killed by the Biafran Obunigwe, also called Ojukwu Bucket

    The Ogbunigwe was a series of weapons systems locally mass-produced by the Biafrans.

    These weapons include command detonation mines, improvised explosive devices and rocket-propelled missiles.

    In his autobiography, ‘A Journey in Service’, the former Military President recounted that it was during that fierce fighting that a Biafran Ogbunigwe shell wounded him.

    Babangida said: “Now, the attention of federal troops shifted to Umuahia. After the first attempt to take Umuahia by the Third Marine Commando failed, Colonel Shuwa gave that task to Lt-Col. Danjuma, who commenced the invasion of Umuahia just days before March 27, 1969. That attack would go on until April 24, 1969.

    “As a Major, I was Commander of the 82 Battalion, one of the seven Battalions deployed by Lt-Col. Danjuma to invade and capture Umuahia.

    “But to get to Umuahia, we had to first go through Uzuakoli, a mere 13 kilometres away. On March 27, we came under heavy bombardment from Biafran forces. But somehow, we held our ground and bulldozed our way to the outskirts of Uzuakoli.

    “Then, under my command, on April 1, the 82nd Battalion attacked and captured Uzuakoli. But as it turned out, our victory came with severe costs.

    “Now acutely aware that from our position in Uzuakoli, we were only a few kilometres away from Umuahia, the Biafran artillery began an uninterrupted bombardment of our positions.

    “Not even our aggressive response to these attacks deterred them. It was during that fierce fighting that a Biafran Ogbunigwe shell wounded me. The shrapnel landed on the left side of my chest and came close, we would later find out, to affecting my lung. I was fortunate.”

    Read Also: IBB under fire over new position on June 12

    He continued: “Initially, I wasn’t aware that I had taken a hit. Partly because of the intense and prolonged firefight, I never heard a shot or felt the impact. I smelled some burning human flesh.

    “In those brief seconds, the wound didn’t hurt. Then suddenly, as I grabbed my chest and felt blood oozing out, I felt like a kick in the trunk had left me with a numb, throbbing pain. And then, my feet started to gradually go numb, first above the knee, then below it. At that point, I think I fell and had to be moved, and one of the other commanders, Mamman Vatsa, took over the command of my battalion.

    “My casualty evacuation process was slower than my colleagues would have wanted. It was getting past dusk, and since the available makeshift runway lacked take-off and landing gears, an improvised runway had to be created from a convoy of military vehicles with their full lights on! Once that was done, I was promptly evacuated to the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi-Araba, Lagos.

    “Surprisingly, despite the throbbing pain, I remained alert and conscious from the moment I took the hit through the period of my evacuation.

    “Even though I wasn’t sure of the nature of my injury, my spirit was upbeat. While I didn’t think I was about to die, I knew this would be a life-changing experience.”

  • NGO condemns N17bn donation at IBB’s book launch, decries out-of-school menace in Nigeria

    NGO condemns N17bn donation at IBB’s book launch, decries out-of-school menace in Nigeria

    The founder of the UK-based Non-Governmental Organisation, IA-Foundation, Ibironke Adeagbo, has criticises the donation of N17 billion for the launch of a book in honor of former Military Head of State, Ibrahim Babangida.

    Speaking with journalists on Friday, Adeagbo questioned the necessity of such a large sum for a book when Nigerians are already familiar with its content. 

    She argued that the funds could have been better utilized to address pressing educational challenges, particularly in providing infrastructure for out-of-school and almajiri children.

    She emphasized that securing adequate funding for building schools and improving access to education remains a significant hurdle, making the donation even more concerning.

    “Over N17 billion was donated for a book that was telling us what we all know about already. 

    “But to raise N17 billion to build schools for out-of-school children and Almajiri children to access education and come off the street is a challenge.

    Mrs. Adeagbo, an advocate for out-of-school and Almajiri children, suggested that redirecting part of the N17 billion donation toward addressing Nigeria’s out-of-school crisis—especially in the North—would be a morally just and impactful social investment.

    She urged well-meaning Nigerians to support the NGO’s mission in tackling the growing challenge of out-of-school children across the country.

    Adeagbo emphasized that children are the leaders of tomorrow, stressing the need for concerted efforts to secure their future through education.

    She further revealed that the NGO is organizing a fundraising event in London on April 26, 2025, with the goal of raising over N60 million to support the education of out-of-school children in Nigeria.

  • IBB under fire over new position on June 12

    IBB under fire over new position on June 12

    • Falae, Agbakoba, Okurounmu, Oshun, Hafsat Abiola: new stance belated, revisionist
    • Akinyemi: leaders should always take responsibility
    • God doesn’t sleep, says Abacha’s daughter Gumsu in cryptic post

    Former military ruler, General Ibrahim Babangida, drew more fire yesterday from across the country over his public admission that the late Chief Moshood Abiola won the June 12, 1993 election.

    Several key actors in the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), including Oba Olu Falae, Dr. Amos Akingba and Olawale Oshun, dismissed Babangida’s latest stance as belated.

    Former Foreign Affairs Minister Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi said leaders should learn from the scenario, adding that the onus is always on them to take responsibility for their good and bad decisions.

    Abiola’s daughter, Hafsat Abiola- Costello, said there was nothing new in what the former ruler said about the true winner of the election, although his brother AbdulMumini seemed satisfied that at long last Babangida “expressed remorse about the decision he made.”

    Gumsu Sani Abacha, daughter of the late military ruler General Sani Abacha, chose to respond with cryptic messages on X apparently over the indictment of her father by Babangida for allegedly engineering the annulment of the election results.

    Babangida also claims in his memoirs that Abacha plotted to violently overthrow his administration and had hatred for the late Chief Moshood Abiola.

    In one of the messages on her X handle G_sparking, yesterday Gumsu wrote in Hausa: Allah baya bacci fa!! Muyi hattara da duniya wallahi (God does not sleep. We should be careful with this world, I swear).

    Babangida, speaking at the launch of the book “A Journey in Service” in Abuja on Thursday, had described the annulment of the election as most regrettable.

    “The nation is entitled to expect my impression of regret,” he said.

    He added: “As the leader of the military administration, I accept full responsibility for all decisions taken under my watch, and June 12 happened under my watch.

    “Mistakes, oversight and missteps happened in quick succession, but as I state in my book, in all matters, we acted in the supreme national interest so that Nigeria could survive.”

    He acknowledged that his administration’s actions disrupted the nation’s transition to civilian rule but claimed that the country overcame the setback.

    One of the sons of the late Chief Abiola, AbdulMunini, said on Arise TV yesterday that I think it’s important that we understand that we’re human and it’s in humans to err and what we need to do is to acknowledge when we make those mistakes and seek forgiveness.

    “So, for me, I think that was more important to me: the fact that he expressed that remorse towards the decision that he had made.”

    Falae: NADECO knew that IBB committed error

    Falae, who served as Secretary to the Federal Government and Finance Minister under Babangida, said pro-democracy forces knew that the former military president committed a blunder long before the Thursday confession.

    Falae, who is now the Olu of Ilu Aabo, Akure, said he had no further reaction to IBB’s admittance of error beyond the reaction NADECO made 32 years ago.

    Falae said the annulment led to a chain of events, including the persecution of activists, bombings and loss of lives.

    He said: “What reaction again? We, members of NADECO, reacted 32 years ago when Abiola’s election was annulled.

    “We formed NADECO in Gen. Adeyinka Adebayo’s house at Ikeja; 52 of us signed a memo demanding the de-annulment.

    “It was the first time civilians would give a military government an ultimatum.”

    Falae added: “The government started harassing us. I spent two years in detention.

    “We made our comments 32 years ago. We rejected the annulment and we gave an ultimatum. We have nothing to add to that.

    “Some of us paid the supreme price. We were detained. Some lost their lives. Some were exiled. Gen. Akinrinade’s house was bombed.

    “We made our reactions 32 years ago. I have nothing to add to that.”

    Leaders should not shun responsibility, says Akinyemi

    Akinyemi, who was among NADECO chieftains who fled the country, said “the facts have spoken for themselves.”

    “You take responsibility for decisions taken under you when you are the one on the seat of power,” he said.

    “The decisions could be yours or taken by your lieutenants. You are the one who will sign it or refuse to sign it. If you don’t decline, it is your responsibility.”

    Akingba: IBB messed up Nigeria

    Eighty-seven-year-old  Akingba said history will not forgive Babangida because he “messed up the country.”

    He said whether he took responsibility or not, it is true that he annulled the poll and threw Nigeria into a nightmare.

    Akingba added: “History will record that it was his own making. He has to live with it. The annulment led to the killing of Abiola, his wife and other people. That cannot be recovered.

    “Abiola died. His wife died and many others who are not remembered again. If I had gone, nobody would remember me, except my family.”

    Akingba said the reflection on the annulment should lead to the debate on the unresolved national question.

    His words: “Nigeria should agree on a loose federation. But they wanted a unitary government.  People are different. We are not one. We need to go back to the regions. They said they unified us. It cannot work.

    “We are just roaming about the bush. Let’s have our Southwest Region, Midwest Region, Eastern Region, South-South Region, Northeast Region, Northcentral Region or Middlebelt Region, and Northwest Region, made up of people who have been together from time immemorial.”

    Current leaders should learn lessons, says Oshun

    Oshun, who was NADECO Secretary abroad, said no leader will escape from the demand for accountability.

    He urged the current crop of leaders to be mindful of the decisions they take in power.

    He said IBB cannot attribute that important decision to other subordinates because he was the leader.

    Oshun, however, lamented that despite the confession, the damage has already been done.

    He said: “We thank God that he has now owned up. Almost every Nigerian knows that the responsibility for that annulment was his own as the Head of State, irrespective of what Abacha and David Mark asked him to do.

    “It is okay that he has owned up. The truth is that a lot of collateral damage, a deep one, took place. People lost their lives on Ikorodu/Lagos road and in various demonstrations that took place across the country.

    “Even those of us who went on exile, the damage cannot be quantified. We must thank him for having the courage to take full responsibility. Nobody doubted he was responsible. But he was cowardly for not owing up.

    “Writing the book is significant to him. All occupants of office – local government chairmen, governors, senators, ministers – one day would be called to account. It is a significant lesson.

    Read Also: Abacha plotted to overthrow me, kill Abiola -IBB

    “Nobody can escape the day of accountability when they will account for their actions and inactions. Those in government should behave well so that they will not come back to apologise in 20 years time.”

    Okurounmu: Babangida is worried by conscience

    Okunrounmu said the ghost of June 12 had hunted Babangida for 32 years, stressing that the former leader is troubled by his legacy.

    Noting his decision to take responsibility, he said Nigerians who knew that he annulled the poll are no fools.

    Okunrounmu stressed: “We knew all the time that he annulled it. May be he is being worried by his conscience now that he is close to his grave. He is worried about his legacy.

    “I don’t think he is bearing full responsibility. He was saying the Emirs and Northern rulers then pushed him to do it. Then, he is still not bearing responsibility.

    “Before, it was a different story. He said young military officers like David Mark said if he allowed MKO Abiola to be president, they would shoot him. Which is the true story? David Mark who insisted that Abiola should not be president or Northern emirs? He needs to clarify that.

    “As president, the buck stopped at his desk. He should bear full responsibility. “

    IBB’s annulment damage now history, says Agbakoba

    A former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Dr Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), yesterday said he was not interested in General Babangida’s apology.

    Agbakoba, a civil rights activist who fought the military as a leader of the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO), said what matters is for the country to move forward.

    He said: “I am frankly not interested in IBB’s apologies as the damage is now part of Nigerian history.

    “My focus is on how Nigeria can learn lessons and become a truly great nation.

    “My policy therefore is to get behind anyone who is President of Nigeria to encourage him or her to place this great country where it truly belongs – one of the world’s great.”

    Peterside: Are we supposed to clap for Babangida?

    Founder of Stanbic Bank, Mr.Atedo Peterside, dismissed the IBB admission as a non-issue.

    “IBB admitting, in 2025, that MKO Abiola won the June 12 Presidential elections in 1993 is as significant as him admitting that night follows the day,” he said on X.

    Continuing, he said: “Are we supposed to clap because he told the truth after three decades?

    “Am I missing something?”

    We always knew my father won, says Hafsat Abiola

    Hafsat in a statement yesterday said Babangida’s public admission that her father won the 1993 election does not change the pain and injustice suffered by her family and Nigerians.

    She said: “When anyone mentions June 12, my mind always goes to MKO and Kudi. But June 12’s staying power was because the vote that Nigerians expressed that day was a vote for a better future and for unity.

    “MKO may have been the symbol of the Hope ’93 campaign but June 12 was about more than one man; it was about the promise of Nigeria that would deliver for Nigerians.

    “For those that kept expressing doubt that Nigerians had spoken so decisively on that day, I’m glad that General IBB’s admission that MKO won the election can now lay the matter to rest.

    “It’s sad that such a galvanising statement as the breakthrough vote for MKO should have been truncated by an unjust annulment.

    “But I will be forever grateful to both MKO and Kudi for not allowing their fears for their personal safety to stand in the way of the people’s desire for a better Nigeria.

    “May such commitment endure.”

     It’s healing to see IBB express regret – Abdulmumuni

    Abdulmumuni Abiola, like his sister, said he already knew that his late father won the election.

    “Even from the young age of eight when the elections were held, I knew my father had won the elections even before they were announced,” he said.

    “I think the second part was more important for me: the acknowledgement that he felt remorse for the actions that he had taken at the time and also his expression that if he had the opportunity to do it again, he would have taken a different path.

    “I think it’s important that we understand that we’re human and it’s in humans to err and what we need to do is to acknowledge when we make those mistakes and seek forgiveness.

    “So, for me, I think that was more important to me, the fact that he expressed that remorse towards the decision that he had made.

     “We now basically know that Abiola did win, and he won across Nigeria. We can talk about Abiola as the figurehead of the June 12th struggle, but what we need to understand is that the Nigerian people were the ones who gave him that mandate and they were the ones who believed in his vision. So, this is also healing for the Nigerian people as well to hear the head of state at the time say those words.”

    Abdulmumuni reflected on how the annulled election impacted his life.

    He said: “When we look at the events of June 12 1993, it brings up a lot of emotions for me. I remember after the election was annulled, I remember my father struggling to get his mandate, struggling to get justice for what he assumed was the wrongful annulment of the election.

    “It proceeded for him to get arrested. He eventually lost his life. At the time when he had gotten arrested, my mom had come out and tried to get him released, and ended up losing her life.

    “So, I know what was lost. I lost a companion in my mother, I lost a guardian, I lost a protector.

    “I basically became an orphan based on that event or that era. You see, I’ve always lived a life, my father was one to always turn your other cheek, in my religion it talks about forgiveness.

    “It talks about forgiving not necessarily for the perpetrator’s sake, but for your sake so you can actually move on.

    “And I think that this was traumatic for the Abiola family, but it was also traumatic for the Nigerian people as well.

    “You mentioned some of your colleagues, their experiences around that time and how they were so afraid. It was uncertain, the future was uncertain for a bunch of Nigerians.

    “We lost a lot of great Nigerian people who felt that Nigeria was not redeemable and they left the country. There was a lot of brain drain in that period as well.

    “So I know that there’s a lot of trauma that has come out, and I don’t think that there will be anything that can be said or done to alleviate that stress.

    “What I’ve tried to do in my life and in moving forward, especially as you can’t change the past, but we can only focus on the future.

    “I’ve tried to not dwell on it, I’ve acknowledged what had happened in the past, but not dwell on it and just try to see how I can use this anger, hurt, and frustration in a way that is productive and moves the nation forward.

    “I think that we can all sit here and talk about all the things that have gone wrong, but we have a nation to run. And we have issues that are pertinent at this time.”

    Gumsu Sani Abacha: God does not sleep

     Gumsu, in a series of posting on her X handle @G_sparking,between Thursday and yesterday said: Allah baya bacci fa!! Muyi hattara da duniya wallahi (God does not sleep. We should be careful with this world, I swear).

    In another, she just wrote ‘Weakling’, and in yet another one, she wrote ‘ABACHA’ with the emoji .

    How Abacha plotted to overthrow my govt, kill MKO —IBB

    Babangida in his memoirs also alleged that the late Abacha plotted to overthrow his administration and that the late military ruler had hatred for Abiola.

    He labelled Abacha one of his biggest headaches during his unending transition programme to civil rule.

    Admitting that though Abacha once saved his life and risked his life to ensure that he (Babangida) took over in1985, Babangida said the Kano born general was a complex character whose intention could not be easily understood.

    He wrote: “Without question, one of my biggest headaches at this time was Sani Abacha. I knew that Abacha was ambivalent about a return to civil rule. But I thought, in retrospect now, naively, that he would support our transition to civil rule programme.

    “As I said earlier, Abacha and I had come a long way. We were good friends, and he had indeed been nice to me. As I have said elsewhere, he saved my life once and also risked his life to ensure that I took over in 1985. I could never forget those details.

    “But it’s also correct that he was a complex character. He was capable of bottling up a lot inside without giving a hint of where he was. And then, suddenly, the bottle bursts, and we begin to see a different person.”

    He further said: “I obviously didn’t know everything about him! For instance, I was alarmed to discover that he and a handful of others mobilised negative opinions against me within the military, portraying me as the problem.

    “That campaign was geared towards a violent military coup to remove me as President forcefully.

    “But even more bizarre for me was my discovery of the loathing that Abacha had for the person of Abiola, whom I thought had a good relationship with him.”