The Power and Forces behind the travails of Chief MKO Abiola and June 12 imbroglio, secretly lie in his initials – MKO”. So controversial Major Hamzat Al-Mustapha told the Oputa Commission at one of its sessions in Lagos – where I was present – on Friday, 15 December 2000. The former Chief Security Officer (CSO) to late General Sani Abacha claimed his findings were based on personal investigations. He said:
“I will describe it this way: M standing for MINNA; K for KANO; and O for OGUN State. If you look at these three towns and states, and look at Nigeria’s political history, these are the only three states in Nigeria that had produced so far, two presidents each. And each of them has something to do with Chief MKO Abiola.
“I will take MINNA first:
M – MINNA; General Ibrahim Babangida. It was General Babangida that annulled the June 12 Election. The beginning of the problem.
Still in Minna; General Abdulsalami Abubakar. It was during his regime that late MKO Abiola died in custody.
“Now, K for KANO.
Late General Murtala Muhammed. it was Muhammed, who introduced him (Abiola) to the military circle.
Next is General Sani Abacha. It was General Abacha’s government that effected the arrest of late Chief MKO Abiola.
“Now, OGUN State.
The first OGUN factor is the present President, Olusegun Obasanjo, his friend and fellow Egba, whom he referred to, even in one of his letters, as a classmate.
The second in Ogun State is Chief Ernest Shonekan, whose acceptance to head the Interim National Government helped to whitewash June 12, at that time.”
That was Major Al-Mustapha, 15 December 2000. What a story. What a tripod!
18 years after the Al-Mustapha submission, Chief Olusegun Osoba, a former Governor of Ogun State, in his Memoirs: BATTLELINES: Adventures in Journalism And Politics – published in 2018, also made some behind-the-scene startling revelations on The Annulment Of June 12 Elections.
Here are excerpts from the book.
••• “On July 7, 1993, a Council of States meeting was called in Abuja to assess the political tension. I was returning with Governor of Oyo State, Kolapo Ishola from the meeting, where there was no consensus on the way forward, when I got a message from General Olusegun Obasanjo. He asked me to see him urgently at his Farm House in Ota. At the Abuja meeting, the military had presented us with what they called “security reports” and some “official briefing” which, according to them, led to the annulment. I decided to go with Governor Ishola to Obasanjo’s Ota farm.
There, he presented us with the conclusions of a meeting he had in Abuja with some military officers and some eminent Nigerians where it was decided that an interim government would be put in place after the exit of the military in August. “Interim what?” I asked. “I am vehemently opposed to the idea”. I told our host that millions of Nigerians who voted overwhelmingly for Abiola would not accept any interim government. This government would never gain the support and confidence of Nigerians. It will not survive. What Nigerians want is for the remaining results of the election to be announced and Abiola declared winner. I will, therefore, not support any idea of an interim government aimed at supplanting Abiola’s mandate,” I concluded. Late Governor Ishola supported and reinforced my views.
Knowing that he could not change our position, Obasanjo said: “I will have to arrange for a plane to be sent from Abuja to take the three of us there to explain your opposition on the ING to the military Chiefs.” On our way out of Ota, I asked Ishola to accompany me to Abeokuta, before proceeding to Ibadan. On the way, I told Ishola that for me, there would be no point meeting Obasanjo any longer or going to Abuja to explain anything to some military Chiefs.
“I am convinced that the military chiefs have already made up their minds and nothing can change them from their hardened hearts,” I said. Ishola agreed with me and we closed that chapter. Unknown to us, some elements within the SDP leadership had gone to Abuja together with the leaders of the rival NRC to negotiate an interim government, which would supplant the mandate of our party’s presidential candidate. Eventually, the leaders of the two parties signed a pact with the military regime to put in place an Interim National Government (ING). Chief Ernest Shonekan would later be appointed by the military to head the ING.
Obasanjo never got back to me. Before we realized it, events had taken a new twist and the matter had been taken off the hands of Obasanjo and to some extent Babangida.
“One day, in the heat of the crisis, Governor Ishola stopped over to see me in Abeokuta from a trip to Lagos. He told me he was coming from Abiola’s house and that Abiola had briefed him about the latest intelligence information about a plan to assassinate him.
A reliable source that had benefited from Abiola’s generosity had sent a message warning him and the need to escape the country instantly. The source looked credible to Abiola. He alerted his pilot and the crew on a pretext of traveling to Katsina. Instead of Katsina, the plane diverted and headed for London. By the time the news reached me, Abiola was already on his way to the United Kingdom.
Shortly after Governor Ishola left, I got a call from General Obasanjo, sounding sarcastic on the phone. “Where is your president?” he asked. “What is wrong with my president?” I shout back. “You don’t know the whereabouts of your president?” he asked again, sounding more scornful.
It struck me that Obasanjo had received the news of Abiola flying out of Nigeria and wanted to deride the man and his supporters. I gave it back to him tit for tat. “My president is in touch with me and had informed me about his movement. But I am not prepared to disclose my president’s movement to anyone,” I replied. “What kind of general would abandon his troops?” he said mockingly. “A good general knows when to withdraw and when to fight back,” I answered. Since he had decided to speak in parables, I responded in kind. The metaphors ended there. He then told me that ING was being formed and that Chief(Mrs.) Bola Kuforiji-Olubi was going to be one of the ministers. She would represent Ogun State. It was obvious he was involved in the process of setting up the ING.
The Egba elite organised a meeting in the palace of the Alake, with Oba Lipede presiding. The agenda was Shonekan’s new position. They resolved that the Egba would give Shonekan total support, on the ground that both Shonekan and Abiola are Egba. The rallying call was that every Egba person in power must be supported by the Egba people. They backed their stand with a Yoruba proverb: “Nkan eni kii di meji ka binu.” It means: ” One shouldn’t be unhappy when your fortune doubles.” They claimed that Chief Shonekan would hand over to Chief Abiola after his stint in power. Ogun State Government issued an immediate statement to oppose and reject the resolution.
Meanwhile, Abiola was shuttling between Europe and North America, granting media interviews and asking the foreign governments to pressurize the military into respecting the democratic wishes of Nigerians.
“The doom I had predicted came to pass fast when Abacha kicked all of us out on November 17, 1993. Through divide and rule tactics, we fell into Abacha’s game-plan and made it easy for him to scuttle our democracy.”
After reading the chapter, I put a footnote: INTRIGUES IN HIGH PLACES – to summarise it all. Chief Olusegun Oshoba’s BATTLELINES: Adventures In Journalism And Politics, contains much more. MKO’s Travails and The June 12 Imbroglio: Can we ever know the truth?
Ayo Akinyemi, Veteran Journalist and Public Analyst
