Former Military Head of State, Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, IBB, has said forces pretending to be friends would have eliminated MKO Abiola if he was declared the winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election.
Babangida admitted that there were formidable forces against Abiola’s emergence as president.Speaking during the launch of his book, “A Journey in Service” in Abuja, the former military Head of State, said he was afraid that Abiola’s assassination would lead to a civil war.
According to Babangida: “Unfortunately, the forces gathered against him after the June 12 elections were so formidable that I was convinced that if he became President, he would be quickly eliminated by the same forces who pretended to be his friends.
“While I accept that the unfortunate denial of his mandate amounted to a subversion of the will of the Nigerian people, I was petrified that if Abiola got killed, it could lead to a civil war.
“Having participated in one civil war, with all its horrors, pains and devastation, I wasn’t prepared to see another.
“I am gratified that the Buhari administration finally recognised MKO Abiola as a ‘former head of state.”
During the book launch, IBB admitted that Abiola won the presidential election in 1993.
He also recounted some of the events that surrounded the annulment of the election, which he regretted.
