The bitter fight
between two former President of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo and Ibrahim
Babangida which blew open a couple of weeks back is still the talk of the town
with close associates of the duo professing reasons for the no love lost
between them.
Our sources
agreed that the war did not start overnight between them but had been on-going
but quietly subdued because of their military background.
“In the
military, it is a very serious offence for you to disrespect your superior no
matter the circumstance,” this was the situation with Babangida until he felt
he could take it no more and voiced out his contempt for the overbearing
attitude of Obasanjo over the years.
Even when he was
a military president, he avoided having issues with Obasanjo even when Obasanjo
found it very convenient to throw mud and bricks at him.
Go and check,
OBJ did more than enough to be arrested during the Babangida regime. He did not
only openly jettisoned the much talked about espirit-de-corp spirit and
attacked IBB's government, he campaigned against him, IBB never for once
replied him as he regarded him as his superior.
It was this
attitude that OBJ extended to the late General Abacha's government which almost
cost him his life, he felt he could say anything, do anything and get away with
it, but Abacha would've none of that and he quickly showed him what it meant to
be in power.”
Another source
positioned that OBJ became the biggest benefactor of the annulment of the June
12 elections despite pretending to be a crusader against it.
“After the
release of OBJ from prison on the recommendation of the likes of IBB and the
need to placate the south west over the annulment, you'll recall that IBB and
his team came all the way from Minna to Otta to not only rehabilitate him but
also to chat a course for him.
They sold him
the idea of coming back to the reigns of power and despite mounting an initial
feeble opposition he accepted and left the planning and execution in the hands
of IBB.
“When IBB came
on the visit, OBJ was dead broke to the extent that he could not even extend
the simple courtesy of entertaining his eminent guests who have come to reshape
his life.
It was this
meeting that gave rise to the second coming of OBJ who went on to rule the
country for eight years.
While in power,
IBB kept his distance so as not to be seen to be influencing major decisions of
the regime, he restricted his activities to his hilltop residence, a close
source to the gap-tooth ex-general disclosed that he neither curry nor got any
patronage from OBJ's government.
One of the
rewards IBB however got from his former boss, was a ground conspiracy not only
to ridicule him but to destabilize his family, hence the many search lights on
IBB'S government and his suspected
stupendous wealth which even culminated in the arrest of his son Mohammed who
the EFCC claimed had a case to answer, but was later released when reasons
prevailed.
After equaling
the 8 year reign of IBB in government, the thought to surpass him started
growing in the OBJ team and that was one of the reasons for the failed 3rd term
bid.
OBJ reportedly
accused IBB of using his closeness to the then senate President, Ken Nnamani to
truncate his ambition and since then, their relationship became a cat and mouse
game.
“You'll recall
that OBJ was very critical of IBB when he was planning to retire to his hilltop
mansion in Minna, OBJ not only built a bigger mansion also on a hilltop in Abeokuta when he was planning his own
retirement too, he entrenched his daughter in politics against public outcry.
When it was time
for OBJ to go he felt the best way to keep IBB's dream of asking him to repay a
favour by giving him the necessary
encouragement to actualize his ambition of becoming a civil president, was to
bring up the late President Umaru Yar'adua, despite knowing his medical
history, the rest as they say is now history.
Another source
disclosed that OBJ had always seen IBB as someone he can never predict his
movement or plans, so he kept an eye on him and monitor his activities closely.
“Recently, he
found out that some of those he felt he empowered while in government have been
hobnobbing with IBB and he found this hard to swallow.
“Some of OBJ's
former aides reportedly revealed some of their plans to IBB which gave rise to
his public rebuke of his former boss.
When Babangida
heard all these coupled with the facts already known, he decide