‘I Was A Good Footballer’ – Abdulsalami Reveals Behind-The-Scenes Drama After 1993 Coup

Former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (retd.), has revealed how the late General Sani Abacha repeatedly pressured him to accept appointment as Chief of Army Staff following the November 1993 coup that removed the Interim National Government led by Chief Ernest Shonekan.

Abdulsalami said he initially rejected the offer twice, insisting he would not allow himself to be used by civilians seeking to manipulate the military for political purposes.

Naija News reports that the revelations are contained in his autobiography, Call of Duty, unveiled on Saturday during celebrations marking his 84th birthday in Abuja.

The event was attended by President Bola Tinubu, represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, former military leaders and other dignitaries.

Recounting the events that preceded the takeover, Abdulsalami said he was serving as Commandant of the National War College, now known as the National Defence College, when rumours of a military intervention began to circulate.

According to him, his first indication of the plot came from the then Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Suleiman Saidu, who visited him at home in November 1993.

“He asked if I was aware that Abacha and Gusau had travelled to Abuja. I was surprised and asked why they should travel to Abuja, because Abacha himself asked me to see him the next day.

“He said, ‘These Army guys are thinking of a coup. Let me tell you that the Navy would not be a part of it.’ I immediately told him to count me out, as I was not in the know,” Abdulsalami wrote.

He said he was equally surprised when the late General Shehu Musa Yar’Adua later called him to ask about reports that the military was planning to remove Shonekan.

“That was the second time I was hearing the rumour,” he recalled.

Following Shonekan’s resignation on November 17, 1993, Abdulsalami said pressure was mounted on him to attend a meeting of senior military officers at the Flag Staff House.

He, however, refused because he had not been formally invited.

“They left and returned one after the other to tell me that my loyalty would be questioned if I did not attend the meeting.

“I replied that it didn’t matter what they thought; since I was not invited, I was not going to attend the meeting,” he wrote.

Even after Lt.-Gen. Jeremiah Useni personally urged him to attend, he still declined.

Out of curiosity, Abdulsalami later stopped by the venue on his way home but was denied entry by a soldier at the gate.

“When I got there, the soldier at the gate said there was an instruction not to allow anybody in and that my name was not on the list of attendees. I went home, thoroughly embarrassed,” he said.

The former Head of State said events took a dramatic turn the following day when an officer called him and announced that he had been selected as Chief of Army Staff.

“He said: ‘Sir, I am giving you orders for the last time.’

“I was furious and replied: ‘You are giving me orders for the last time? Who are you? You are foolish!’”

The officer later informed him that the new Commander-in-Chief wanted to see him and that a decision had been taken to appoint him Army chief.

Abdulsalami said he rejected the move and expressed anger over the manner in which military procedures were being disregarded.

“Military discipline was being thrown out of the window within the twinkle of an eye!” he wrote.

About 30 minutes later, Abacha personally called him and invited him for a private meeting at the Flag Staff House.

During the discussion, Abdulsalami said he agreed to work with the new military ruler but only after laying down two conditions.

“He said: ‘Abdul, if I make you the Chief of Army Staff, would you accept to work with me?’”

According to him, he told Abacha that if he was ever considered a problem in government, he should be informed directly rather than hearing of his removal on the radio.

He also insisted that their friendship would not stop him from speaking honestly.

“I said that if he accepted my conditions, I would accept his offer. ‘Okay, thank you,’ he replied,” Abdulsalami wrote.

Despite the agreement, Abdulsalami said he later received information that plans had been made to retire him from the military.

An officer who attended the meeting allegedly informed him that he was among 15 senior officers listed for retirement after the decision to appoint him as Army chief was reversed.

Among those reportedly marked for retirement were Major-Generals John Shagaya, Lawrence Onoja, Raji Rasaki, Tunde Ogbeha and David Mark.

“I said we should prepare to go home,” he recalled.

However, the retirement never materialised.

Abdulsalami said he only discovered he had been appointed Chief of Defence Staff when a journalist showed him an embargoed list containing the names of new military appointees.

“She opened her bag, brought out a list, and said it was given to reporters but was embargoed till 4:30 pm. On the list, I saw my name as Chief of Defence Staff.

“I was shocked and said we were in for a tough job,” he wrote.

His appointment was later confirmed by a radio announcement and a phone call from his brother.

The former military ruler also reflected on his long-standing relationship with Abacha, which began during their school days in Northern Nigeria and continued throughout their military careers.

“I was a good footballer. Abacha was a defender, while I was a forward liner, what is called a striker today.

“He always marked me during matches.

“We naturally ended up as friends. That was how our relationship started,” he wrote.

The friendship later extended into military service, where both men served during the Nigerian Civil War.

Abdulsalami further disclosed that he once warned Abacha about the dangers of allowing arbitrary decisions within government.

After hearing about the retirement of senior officers through a BBC broadcast, he said he confronted the late Head of State.

“I said to him: ‘Sani, if you do not take action, one day, you would be sitting down here and you would hear your name over the radio that you have been removed as the Head of State,’” he recalled.

Abdulsalami eventually succeeded Abacha as Head of State following his sudden death in June 1998 and oversaw Nigeria’s transition to democratic rule before handing over power to former President Olusegun Obasanjo on May 29, 1999.