"Who the hell is Bamaiyi that I will want to kill?" - Obasanjo

Olusegun Obasanjo

A onetime Head of State and Former civilian President of Nigeria, Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo (rtd), had on Sunday, April 9, 2017, said that his government has never for once plotted to kill the former Chief of Army Staff under General Sani Abacha's regime, Lt. Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi (rtd) as claimed in Bamaiyi' book.

While hosting the members of Correspondents Chapel, Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Ogun Chapter, at his Abeokuta's residence, the former President stated this in his defence.

Ishaya Bamaiyi

Obasanjo further explained that his administration only demanded Bamaiyi's answer to those that he allegedly murdered, saying that the decision then, was legitimate.

Obasanjo said: “That I wanted to kill him? What of the people he killed? My government did not plot to kill him.

“My government asked him to answer to those that were alleged to have been killed by him and that is legitimate.

“That if there is an allegation that you have done something, that you have committed a crime, then you are arrested, you should answer and that is all.

“Who the hell is he that I would want to kill him? Kill him for what? To achieve what? No!.

“There were allegations, the police and the law enforcement agencies decided to look into the allegations.

“They invited him and they asked him to answer as a result of what was found, so they charged him to court.

“So, it’s now up to him, the investigators as I said, the prosecutors and the judiciary. That’s all.” 

Recall that the press reported that Bamaiyi had recently claimed that his imprisonment for almost nine years was inform of punishment for moving against the choice of Obasanjo as successor to General Abdusalami Abubakar, the then Head of State. Bamaiyi wrote all these allegations in his book, entitled: “Vindication of A General” which was launched last weekend in Abuja.

Bamaiyi also alleged in the book that the imprisonment was to keep him away for fear of coup and that he would topple Obasanjo's government.

He wrote that the moment Obasanjo took over, General Abubakar and some of his colleague advised Obasanjo that if Bamaiyi was left free, he would overthrow the new civilian government.

While having his say on corruption, General Obasanjo said investigations must be thorough, proper and undertaken very well with all seriousness.

He said, “I was reading today when the President (Muhammadu Buhari) said the EFCC should stop losing cases. They lose cases for a number of reasons.

“One, they engage more of outside lawyers. I believe that they need staunch, `ogbologbo’ lawyers inside that will do the work.

“If I am a lawyer and I want the opponent to win a case, what I will file will be `wishy washy’.

“And if I file a `wishy washy’ case, the opponent will see the loophole and he will get out of it. I believe that it is important.

“Secondly, thorough investigation is very important. Now, investigation must be thorough, it must be proper and it must be really taken seriously.

“Third, our judges must be committed in fighting corruption.

“They must be committed to fighting corruption. Because if the investigation is very sound and you have `ogbologbo’ lawyer to handle the case, if you have Salamigate, you know what the answer will be.

“So it is a line: investigation, prosecution and the judiciary. If there is weakness along this line, chances are that corruption cases will continue to be lost."