BY CLIFFORD NDUJIHE & DAPO AKINREFON
AT the height of late General Sani Abacha’s  military reign, the polity was suffused with a series of phantom coups and accompanying videos. One them tendered at special tribunal showed former Chief of Defence Staff and then Abacha’s second-in-command, Lt. General Oladipo Diya, who was fingered in an alleged coup, apologising profusely to Abacha in an embarrassing manner.

Once again, the polity has rewound to that era. And this time, there is a video tape indicting departed Yoruba and Afenifere leaders – Senator Abraham Adesanya and Bola Ige among others in the death of presumed winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential polls, Chief MKO Abiola and in taking bribes to douse tension in the country, especially South-West after Abiola’s death.

As it is, a Lagos High Court has the duty of stating whether or not the pictorials of the video are real.
Former Chief Security Officer to the late General Sani Abacha, Major Hamzat Al_Mustapha, tendered the video cassette to the Lagos High Court last Wednesday as an exhibit and it was played in the open court on Thursday morning.

Al- Mustapha tendered the video as part of his defence in his trial over the murder of Mr Abiola’s wife, Kudirat. The duration of the film was about five minutes and it showed Afenifere leader, Senator Abraham Adesanya,  Chief Bola Ige and other Southwest leaders leaving Aso Rock, on July 8, 1998, a day after the death of MKO Abiola in detention.

Late MKO Abiola and Late Gen Sani Abacha

The video was watched on two television sets, the first one faced the presiding judge, Justice Mojisola Dada and the second TV set faced the audience in the courtroom.

While Al Mustapha claimed that the video was evidence that Yoruba leaders were implicated in the death of Abiola, the video, which he said he had recorded by ordinary camera because he could not use the CCTV, merely showed some of the leaders, including Abraham Adesanya, Bola Ige and Ayo Opadokun leaving the state house after a meeting with the then Military head of State, Abubakar Abdulsalami.

Before Abiola’s death, the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) had insisted on revalidation of ‘June 12’ and swearing in of Abiola as President to actualise his mandate. When the late business tycoon died in detention, NADECO leaders called for convocation of a Sovereign National Conference (SNC) to midwife a new constitution for the country.

However, along the line, the late Pa Adesanya said then Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar appeared sincere in his 11-month transition programme, a perception that made the dominant  progressive and NADECO wing of South-West to participate in the 1998/1999 elections on the banner of the Alliance for Democracy (AD), which went on to clear the polls in the South-West.

Since Al-Mustapha’s allegation last Tuesday, the South-West political landscape has been astir and the ‘revelation’ has continued to generate heat in the polity.

While eminent Nigerians viewed Mustapha’s allegation as a ruse, others were of the opinion that an investigation be made into the statement that some prominent Yoruba leaders were compensated to douse the heightening tension generated by Abiola’s death.

Mustapha had given a graphic detail of how the dignitaries from the South-West kept visiting Aso Rock after the death of Abacha.

He thus fingered two dead Yoruba leaders—Pa Abraham Adesanya and Chief Bola Ige.

He claimed Chief Ige was the one liaising with the Presidency earlier to either release Abiola or restore his stolen mandate. Ige, he alleged, was the one used to scuttle the mandate.

Besides, he said he had graphic details of how some dignitaries visited Aso Rock after the death of Abiola.
Al-Mustapha revealed that political leaders from the South West were all bribed with $200m, £75m and N500m from funds made available by the Central Bank of Nigeria to silence them over the death of Abiola.

The former CSO made the disclosure at the Lagos High Court where he is standing trial over the death of Kudirat Abiola, wife of Chief Abiola and acclaimed winner of the annulled June 12, 1993 Presidential elections.

These monies, the former CSO stated, were shared to so many people.Corroborating Mustapha’s statement, founder of the South West militia group, Oodua Peoples Congress, OPC, Dr Fredrick Fasehun admitted that indeed, monies exchanged hands.

Fasehun, who has been in the forefront of advocating the release of the former CSO, said “that was what informed my support for the young man. He (Al_Mustapha) told me about those who collected money four years ago and I have since kept it with me. I did not want to disclose this for security reasons and for the unity and peace of Yoruba land. Since he has come out to mention names, I am basing this on what he told and I am sure there are other names involved that he needs to mention.”

The statement drew angry reactions.

Former Minister of Finance, Chief Olu Falae dismissed the allegation. Falae said “it is total disbelief because Pa Abraham Adesanya was our leader and I cannot believe he could collect huge sums of money without telling any one of us. What Al_Mustapha has said is totally out of character because Pa Adesanya lived a prudent life when he was alive.”

The former ANPP presidential candidate said no one would have the courage to approach the likes of Adesanya and any member of the Afenifere group to money.

He explained that the group (Afenifere) had a tradition where members usually disclose whatever amount they were given or contracts awarded.

In his argument, he said “the tradition of our group is that whenever anyone collects money or contracts, he will tell the rest of us. He never mentioned anything about someone giving him any money. In any case, my own perception is that no one would have the courage to approach anyone of us to give money, it is unthinkable. I know no one would have the courage to approach me to give me money.”

Mustapha’s allegation will no doubt raise some dust over the credibility of some revered Yoruba leaders. Another Afenifere chieftain, Chief Supo Shonibare said the late NADECO chieftain, had every opportunity to enrich himself with governments entrenched under his leadership but chose not to.

Shonibare, who is an ardent Afenifere apostle, absolved Adesanya of perpetrating the act.
He said “here was a man who even refused to accept constituency allowance, even from the Action Group of Nigeria, his own party, during the Western Regional House of Assembly crisis. Papa Adesanya’s reputation and integrity is unimpeachable. It definitely cannot be tarnished by our soldiers of fortune.”

Another NADECO chieftain, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, when asked to react to the allegation laughed and said “those names cannot be true except he has some evidence to show for his allegations.”

On his part, Senator Femi Okurounmun described him as a coward noting that “it is unfortunate that Al_Mustapha is mentioning names of Yoruba elders that are dead, why didn’t he mention their names before they died to enable them defend themselves?.”

“I believe the man Al_Mustapha is a coward and he is showing signs of a sinking and drowning man. How could Abraham Adesanya or Bola Ige collect money from Abdulsalami? Those two personalities were not poor men when they were alive,” he stated.

Aside, Mustapha has a lot of questions begging for answers: Why did not make the allegations during Adesanya’s lifetime? Is this a plot by the former security chief to drag  many people with him to the river? Why is he casting aspersion on two dead prominent Yoruba leaders?

But as more revelation continues to be unraveled, tongues will continue to wag as to the level of alleged involvement of prominent Yoruba leaders in the scandal.