Former military head of state, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, IBB has finally come clean on what informed his annulment of the June 12 general election.
IBB inexplicably annulled the June 12, 1993 general election which was considered by most Nigerians as the freest and fairest poll in the country’s history.
The election was contested between Moshood Kashimawo Abiola of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Bashir Tofa of the National Republican Convention (NRC). It was widely believed that the candidate of the SDP was leading when Babangida annulled the election.
The former dictator continues to receive criticism for that decision. He has however decided to come clean on what led to the sudden annulment of the election.
Babangida, while speaking with Arise TV on Friday, revealed that if he had not annulled the election, a coup d’etat would have occurred.
“If it materialised, there would’ve been a coup d’etat — which could have been violent. That’s all I can confirm. It didn’t happen thanks to the engineering and the ‘maradonic’ way we handled you guys in the society. But that could’ve given room for more instability in the country.”He said the pressure was from both within the military and outside the military.
“Both. The military can do it because they have the weapons to do it, and others (civil society groups) can use agitation,” IBB said.
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