General Sani Abacha, who ruled the country from 1993 until his death in 1998, deceived politicians to get into power, according to General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, popularly known as IBB. In an interview with Trust TV, IBB spoke on how Abacha outfoxed them and got into power. Abacha, whom IBB described as his “very good friend”, also served as the Chief of Army Staff during the latter’s military regime from 1985 and was subsequently appointed the Minister of Defence under the same government in 1990. IBB said, “Abacha’s government was very smart. They knew who were the most vociferous discussants about the election, about the coup, about June 12 and so on. They started talking to them and sold a dummy to them and encouraged them to get rid of the interim government; ‘when we get rid of the interim government, we will bring you back to come and take over your democracy so that a civilian government would be installed’. “They sold that dummy to the public and to some prominent persons within the society, and when Abacha stepped in, there were drumming and sighs; ‘Good thing! Next thing is going to be a democratically-elected government’. I knew, we knew, that it wouldn’t be because the argument was: ‘Why should I risk my life only to come and hand over power to you?’ That was what happened.” He also admitted that despite being close allies, Abacha’s military coup did not surprise him. “I knew it will come as a surprise because even though I was outside – outside the service – I knew what was going on,” he explained. Abacha had served as the Minister of Defence and the most senior military officer had come to power by ousting the interim national government formed by IBB and headed by Ernest Shonekan, by forcing the latter to resign. In a widely circulated broadcast on November 17, 1993, Abacha announced to the nation that he had taken over from Shonekan as a result of sociopolitical uncertainties as the time.

The Spokesman of the All Progressives Congress, Delta State chapter, Ogheneluemu Sylvester Imonina, has dumped the party. Imonina tendered his resignation in a letter titled ‘Resignation Of My Membership Of All Progressives Congress And Position As Acting State Publicity Secretary Of The Party.’ In the letter, he said, “I want to use this opportunity to thank the leaders of my ward, LGA, APC, Isoko Nation and members of the party across the state for the support given to me while I contributed my quota to the development of the party. “To everyone who supported me, I say a big thank you.” He, however, failed to state if he was defecting to another party.

Salihu Lukman, former director-general of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF), says some leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have become tyrants. TheCable had reported how Lukman resigned his position over the controversy surrounding the party’s convention planned for February. Confirming his resignation in a statement on Wednesday, he said since the buildup to the 2019 elections, internal contests in the party have worsen. The former director-general said he would continue with his campaign to return APC to its founding vision. “I can confirm that it is true I have given my resignation to Forum Chairman, His Excellency Abubakar Atiku Bagudu. I restrained myself from making any public statement on the matter because I am still awaiting acceptance,” he said. “I have privately responded to many enquiries from party leaders, friends, family members and clarified that it is true that my decision to resign my position is to enable me to continue with the campaign to return APC to its founding vision, which is to build a party that is not only democratic but oriented based on social democratic principles. “Since the buildup to the 2019 elections, internal contests in the APC began to degenerate. “Some leaders became intolerant and conducted themselves almost as tyrants. Every campaign to get the leadership of the party to commence the process of internal reform was resisted. “Some party leaders in the bid to emerge as candidates of the party for offices became hostile.” According to him, on hearing about his resignation, Bola Tinubu, former Lagos governor, reached out and commended him for championing campaigns to reform the party. “One of the party leaders who honoured me with an invitation to meet him late on Tuesday, January 17, 2022, was Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” he said. “He commended me for championing the campaigns to reform the party and expressed shock that some members of Forum were intolerant to criticism. “He argued that any party leader who will not accommodate critical opinion on fundamental issue such as respecting decisions and especially a matter as sensitive as organising the National Convention, which is the highest organ of the party, such a person is not a democrat and shouldn’t be associated with a party envisioned to be progressive such as the APC.”

The Presidency has said corrupt elites in the country do not want “another Buhari” in 2023 because of their selfish agenda. The Media Aide to President Muhammadu Buhari, Garba Shehu, in a statement on Tuesday, said the President’s strong legacy would be difficult to dismantle. He explained the reasons why President Buhari cannot take a “business as usual approach” in governance. According to him, many of the political elites in the country cannot wait for the President’s second term in office to end as they wish for a return to the “good old days” of helping themselves to public funds with abandon. The statement read in part, “So many in the political elite of this country cannot wait for the President’s second term in office to end. They yearn for a return to the ‘good old days’ of helping themselves to public funds with abandon, the easy export of ill-gotten money to foreign bank accounts, of acting without responsibility, accountability, or censure. The last thing they want is ‘another Buhari’. “Even though the President will stand down after the election of a successor next year – whether that successor lives up to the exacting standards and example he has set or not – his legacy is strong and will be peculiarly tough to dismantle: “Courts that hold those before it fairly and properly accountable – regardless of their wealth or lack of it; the successful repatriation of stolen funds from decades of export abroad and its use to fund social empowerment, and welfare programmes for the poorest; reforms that have taken the steam out of centuries-long ethnic and tribal disputes – such as the farmer-herder clashes – long used to stoke ethnic and regional tensions by venial politicians for political advantage; and the protection of millions through an effective vaccine roll-out programme. “These are just a tiny handful of the achievements of the President. But, perhaps, his greatest achievement of all is to break the belief that Presidents of Nigeria take the office and use it to enrich themselves and their accessories at the public’s expense. “That wicked spell is broken for good. And it has offended politicians everywhere. They thought the state owed to them while the people provided for the state. Instead, they have witnessed how, when the state owes to them nothing, it provides for the people.”