Daughter of late Nigeria Military President, Gumsu Fatima Abacha,
has slammed Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka over the comments he
made about her father, late Sani Abacha.....
She took to her Facebook page and wrote; “Wole soyinka oya na!!! Over to you!! Wicked old hawk …. your hate for my father shall kill you. Olori buruku mad cow.”
Recall that the acclaimed playwright told President Buhari that he
cannot honor MKO Abiola in one breath and admire his tormentor Sani
Abacha in the same breath.
Soyinka, who spoke in Abuja on Wednesday at the national honours
investiture for heroes of democracy, said that although he understood
Buhari’s official loyalty to Abacha, it shouldn’t take preeminence over
the preservation of democracy.
“Dear Mr. President, you cannot honour Abiola in one breath and
admire his tormentor in the same breath. So, as we have the Hall of
Heroes in one hand, we also have the Hall of Shame as a lesson to future
generations,” he said.
Gumsu Abacha also shared a post by one Ajayi Temitope. Read below:
****************
“Where I Disagree with Professor Soyinka
I love Professor Wole Soyinka. Who would not love such an
extraordinarily ubiquitous and prodigious man. He is one of God’s
special gifts to Nigeria.
He made an impassioned speech two days ago at the June 12 event
in Abuja. That was the essential WS on song. Where I disagree with
Prof. was at the point he said President Buhari can not honour MKO while
at the same time be loyal or love his tormentor. A veiled reference to
what Buhari said or didnt say about Late Gen. Sani Abacha.
Does Buhari have a right to love anyone he chooses to love?
That is if he truly loves or loyal to Abacha. And is there anything
wrong if he loved Abacha. Only few people possibly know the story of
Abacha’s kindness to Buhari.
To deny Buhari the right to love anyone he chooses to love is
to ‘thingify’ him ( apology to Professor Benedict Ibitokun). We would
simply be reducing PMB to a robot or an inanimate object without
feelings and emotions.
Aja N. Aja will remember the encounter with Mallam Yau Darazo,
longtime associate of PMB and one his very close aides in September 2014
during the campaign. Darazo told us some details about the relationship
between Buhari and Abacha.
After Buhari’s overthrow in 1985 he was detained for 3years by
IBB. He was released almost into penury. He had to take into subsistence
farming to support himself and his family with goodwill from his
friends.
His benefits as a Two-Star General were not paid. His pension
not paid by the Military. When Abacha became Head of State some of their
mutual friends went to Abacha to tell him about the living condition of
Buhari and the injustice of not paying his benefits and pension. Abacha
was, reportedly, shocked to hear such and the level of deprivation.
Abacha called Buhari, appealled and also apologized to him.
Abacha then approved the benefits and other special package for
Buhari. Being a decent man, Buhari used his situation to also tell
Abacha about the dire financial condition of Gen. Gowon and former
President Shagari. He urged Abacha to do whatever he will do to cover
the two former leaders.
That was the beginning of what we have today as Benefits to
former Presidents which had been enacted into law by the National
Assembly. Abacha approved the benefits to cover Buhari, Gowon, Shonekan
and Shagari.
When Abacha eventually appointed him as Executive Chairman of
PTF he didn’t take any salary because he said it would be unethical to
draw benefits from two sources from same Federal Govt.
General Abdulsalami continued same practice for former leaders
as approved by Late Abacha. President Obasanjo saw value in it and also
continued until it was taken beyond just a Presidential magnanimity. It
was taken to NASS as an Executive Bill and passed into law.
Given this relationship, it will be unfair to expect President
Buhari to hate or publicly speak ill of Abacha regardless. What he said
about Abacha was taken out of context. He simply said there were
concrete things Abacha did with Nigeria’s money despite of his abysmally
poor Human Rights records.
It is also not true that Buhari didn’t speak against June 12
annulment. He did. He actually said MKO must be allowed to enjoy his
mandate. Senator Shehu Sani, who was the arrowhead of pro-democracy
movement from the Northern axis alluded to same fact.”
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