November 30, 2024
By Samuel Ogunsona
A retired colonel of the Nigerian Army, Babatunde Bello-Fadile, has revealed that the late General Sani Abacha would not have successfully taken over power from the interim government of late businessman Ernest Sonekan if he had been allowed to resume as Sonekan’s aide-de-camp (ADC).
“I was posted ADC to Sonekan. I don’t know why I was not allowed to resume. Still, if I had been ADC, it (the takeover) probably wouldn’t have happened,” Bello-Fadile said on the Friday edition of Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, a socio-political programme aired on Channels Television.
Bello-Fadile explained that he was instructed by the Chief of Army Staff to wait until Sonekan returned from the Commonwealth Head of State meeting in Malta before resuming his duties as ADC.
By the time Sonekan returned, Abacha had already taken over power.
The return of democracy in Nigeria was marked by a series of events, including the controversial annulment of the 1993 presidential election, which was won by the late MKO Abiola. General Ibrahim Babangida, who had taken over power in 1985, resigned and formed an interim government with Sonekan as president and Abacha as Chief of Defence Staff and Minister of Defence.
However, Abacha overthrew Sonekan in a palace coup on November 18, 1993, just three months into his administration. Over 30 years later, Bello-Fadile believes that the circumstances behind Sonekan’s resignation were abnormal.
Bello-Fadile also recounted how he confronted Abacha after the takeover. “The military decided to leave after June 12 and an interim government was set up and it was agreed that we would midwife and elected government,” he said.
“The civilians that were elected were allowed to stay but my friend (Abacha) decided to say no. The second in command to Sonekan (Abacha) organised a resignation and threw away the agreement that the military had had enough, and should set a path for democratic government.”
Bello-Fadile noted that Abacha’s actions were a betrayal of the agreement that had been reached.
“Likeminded persons in the military said that can’t happen. Then Abacha said these are IBB boys behind the insistence for a return to democracy. And all of a sudden, he announced their retirement.”
Bello-Fadile revealed that he was part of a panel set up by Abacha to review the judiciary, but he was the only military person on the panel. He also noted that Abacha set up a police reform panel and called for a White Paper, which was just a ploy to buy time.
“When we submitted the White Paper Committee Report, he asked me what we were hearing, and I told him that the people wanted the military to return to the barracks,” Bello-Fadile said.
He also criticized Abacha’s decision to dispose of the decree that had been set up by General Ibrahim Babangida. “The Decree 61 that Babangida set up and made you the deputy with a clause that if anything happens to the interim president, you will take over but taking over does not mean you should dispose of the decree; it means you take over as the head of state and continue with the cabinet but you took over and turned it upside down. That’s why the international community is not happy with you.”
Bello-Fadile emphasized that he did not want to overthrow the government, but rather wanted to see the interim government restored. “I didn’t want to overthrow the government. We wanted an interim government back. I was the one doing all the running around. General (Olusegun) Obasanjo was doing his own with his National Unity Organisation of Nigeria. He was also calling for the military to go back to the barracks.”
He also noted that General Shehu Yar’Adua was part of the Constituent Assembly that set a date for the military to leave.
