Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida Once Warned Obasanjo About Atiku, Says Donald Duke
In a passage, former Governor of Cross River State, Donald Duke, revealed that former military ruler General Ibrahim Babangida (IBB) once warned former President Olusegun Obasanjo not to trust his then-vice president, Atiku Abubakar.
Duke disclosed this in Seun Oloketuyi's book titled How to Win Elections in Nigeria, which details Nigerian politics during the early Fourth Republic.
According to Duke, as Obasanjo was preparing to seek a second term in 2003, his relationship with Atiku began to sour, raising doubts about Atiku's support for the president's re-election.
Duke said that around 10 governors met with the PDP chairman at the time, Solomon Lar, to discuss the possibility of replacing the vice presidential candidate. Obasanjo called him at night complaining about what he described as betrayal by his deputy, whereupon Duke urged him to remain calm. Later, Atiku arranged a meeting between Obasanjo, Babangida, and former Head of State Abdulsalami Abubakar at the Presidential Villa.
Duke noted that after the meeting, when Babangida and Obasanjo retreated to Obasanjo's room alone, IBB reminded him that he had previously warned him not to trust his vice president. According to Duke, after returning to the group, Babangida looked at Atiku and told Obasanjo: "This one cannot rule Nigeria."
Duke stated that the incident illustrated the deep mistrust between Obasanjo and Atiku at the time. The political feud between the two resurfaced recently after Obasanjo accused Atiku of giving 5 million Naira to the late Ghali Umar Na'Abba to launch an impeachment attempt against him during his first term.
However, Atiku denied the allegation, stating that Obasanjo was fabricating these accusations to oppose Atiku's presidential ambition.