By Matthew Atungwu Former military Head of State, Ibrahim Babangida, has revealed how the late Major-General Shehu Yar’Adua orchestr...
By Matthew Atungwu
Former military Head of State, Ibrahim Babangida, has
revealed how the late Major-General Shehu Yar’Adua orchestrated the removal of
Yakubu Gowon as Nigeria’s Head of State in 1975.
Babangida made this revelation in his autobiography, A
Journey in Service, launched in Abuja last Thursday.
He said the relationship between General Gowon and Brigadier
Murtala Muhammed was frosty, considering that Muhammed was seen as a
‘kingmaker’ in bringing Gowon to power, which did not help matters at the time.
“As young officers, we could see that Muhammed, idolized by
many of us in the army, was quite a handful in matters pertaining to control!
“However, when the final decision was made in early 1975 to
remove the Gowon administration, the feeling was that another military regime
would take over and prepare the country for civil rule,” he said.
He said he was not surprised when Musa Yar’Adua pulled him
aside and suggested that a government change was necessary to save the country
and preserve the integrity of the military.
“After our meeting, Yar’Adua co-opted others, including
Colonels Paul Tarfa, Alfred Aduloju, Lt-Cols. Muhammadu Buhari (then the
director of supply and transport), Sani Bello, and Sani Sami. I recall that
Brigadier Martin Adamu and General Gowon’s ADC, Colonel William Walbe, refused
to be drawn into the plot,” Babangida added.
DAILY POST recalls that Shehu Yar’Adua was Chief of Staff,
Supreme Headquarters, during the regime of Olusegun Obasanjo as Head of State.
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