In a revealing insight into Nigeria’s political past, Jamiu Abiola, son of the late Chief MKO Abiola, has shared details about why former military ruler General Sani Abacha did not carry out a plot to assassinate the mother of President Bola Tinubu. According to Jamiu, the aborted plan was influenced by a deep personal debt Abacha owed to Tinubu’s mother, Alhaja Abibatu Mogaji.
Jamiu explained that during his time as a UN translator and later as a staffer in the Office of the National Security Adviser, he uncovered documents indicating that Tinubu was marked for elimination by the Abacha regime, and his mother was also considered a target. However, Abacha reportedly halted the plan out of gratitude, recalling how Tinubu’s mother had helped him secure accommodation in Lagos during his early military career when he was struggling financially.
Jamiu noted that this rare act of kindness from Tinubu’s mother left a lasting impression on Abacha, who ultimately decided not to carry out the hit. He revealed that this information was part of what he discovered while working to understand the depth of the conspiracy behind his father’s 1998 death in detention under suspicious circumstances.
He emphasized that his findings highlight the complexities of Nigerian political intrigues during the 1990s and underlined how personal relationships and past favors often influenced major decisions. The revelation adds a new dimension to the historical narrative surrounding Abacha’s dictatorship and the web of resistance that shaped Nigeria’s transition to democracy.
