Babafemi Ojudu, an author and former senator, has recounted how President Bola Tinubu secretly recorded a Jewish lawyer exposing the looting carried out by Sani Abacha, a former military ruler, in the 1990s.
Ojudu narrated the incident in an interview with Edmund
Obilo, while speaking on his recently published book titled, ‘Adventures of A
Guerrilla Journalist’.
Abacha, who ruled Nigeria from 1993 to 1998, is reported to
have diverted around $5 billion during his time in power.
These funds were hidden in foreign bank accounts in countries
including the US, UK, and Switzerland.
The funds, which the federal government has been gradually
recovering over the years, were stashed in foreign banks, including those in
the United States, United Kingdom, and Switzerland.
In the interview, Ojudu recalled meeting Tinubu while he was
in exile in the UK while working as a journalist.
He said Tinubu took him to meet the Jewish lawyer who had
promised to provide key information about Abacha’s corruption and those
involved in the looting.
Ojudu, unable to write during the conversation, said he
tried to memorise as much as possible.
However, midway through the discussion, Tinubu excused
himself to use the bathroom and returned after a brief absence.
Ojudu said Tinubu later revealed he had secretly switched
the recording tape while in the bathroom, making sure the lawyer did not notice
the change.
“I was excited as a newsman. We went there and sat before
the lawyer. He (the lawyer) kept reeling out how Abacha was stealing, and who
was helping him,” he recounted.
“The name that was constantly mentioned was the Chagoury
brothers. I was so excited but I felt so bad that because I couldn’t write. I
needed to take notes. I kept trying to memorise whatever I could.
“Midway to the engagement, our brother (Tinubu) excused
himself to go to the bathroom and came back. After about two hours, the
engagement came to an end and we hailed a taxi to return to his house.
“While there, I said what you took me to listen to today was
super exclusive but unfortunately I will have to talk to you when we get home
so that if you remember some things I will note them down.
“He said to me: Don’t worry yourself. I had a tape recorder
with me. That time I went to the bathroom, I went to change the recording from
side one to side two. That is why I flushed the toilet so that the man would
not know that I was changing the tape.”
Ojudu described Tinubu as a “strategist” who would do
whatever it took to achieve his goals.
He, however, said Tinubu tried to stop the story from being
published.
“He (Tinubu) is a strategist. He does what he has to do to
get what he has to get. I love to work with people like that, who will always
find a solution,” Ojudu added.
“We got home and ate. He was on the couch and slept off. I
rifled through him and took the tape and then woke him and said I was leaving.
“About 8pm when I got to my hotel, I quickly changed my
flight to the following morning.
“He (Tinubu) called me at 8pm and said: Femi where are you,
I can’t find that tape. I said it was with me. He said: what are you doing with
it? I said I am going home tomorrow to publish it. He said if you publish it;
you are dead. I said I would publish it and let them kill me.
“So, I got back to Nigeria and played the tape to some of my
staff, gave them assignments on what they should check and we ran the story. It
was a story that shook Abacha.”
Ojudu, once an ally of Tinubu, revealed in the interview
that he opposed Tinubu’s presidential bid in 2022 and chose not to vote for him
in the 2023 elections.
The politician said his decision not to support Tinubu’s
ambition was not a betrayal.
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