The former Army Chief revealed further that Abacha made this move because the country at the time had been abandoned by its' western allies and there was need for Nigeria to keep playing its peacekeeping roles in the region.
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| Former Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi |
Ex-chief of Army Staff, Ishaya Bamaiyi has revealed how late Head of States, Gen Sani Abacha, saved Nigeria's funds to enable him procure arms for peacekeeping missions.
Bamaiyi,
who made this known in his newly launched book, ‘Vindication of a
General’, said the ex-military head of state, transferred money to some
European countries to enable Nigeria continue peacekeeping missions in
the West African region.
He wrote: “The
subject of money supposedly looted by the late General Abacha is a key
issue in Nigeria’s diplomatic relationship with many Western countries. I
am not in a position to defend Abacha or suggest he did not tamper with
the wealth of Nigeria, because I was not in a position to know how as a
Head of State he handled Nigeria’s funds”.
“I
am however in a position to say what I know led to the transfer of
funds to some countries in Europe and may be other countries outside
Europe. It is a known fact that Nigeria was virtually abandoned by some
of its' traditional Western allies during the Abacha government and it
became difficult for the country to purchase arms and ammunition to
conduct operations in Liberia and Sierra Leone at that time, especially
after the execution of Ken Saro Wiwa".
“In
the light of the increasingly battered international image of Nigeria
and even references to Nigeria in academic circle as a ‘rogue’ state,
some decisions had to be taken if Nigeria was to continue to play its
role as a stabiliser in the West African region, a role very much valued
by the United Nations," he said.
Continuing, Bamaiyi wrote: “A
decision was therefore reached to keep money in some countries that
were a bit friendly to Nigeria. This decision was taken at a meeting in
which the then Minister of Finance, Chief Anthony Ani, was present. It
was agreed that some funds be transferred to some selected countries to
ensure that government was in a position to get vital imports as and
when necessary".
“That informed the
transfer of funds to some countries. I am glad that Chief Anthony Ani,
the then finance minister, once tried to explain this in a newspaper
interview publication.”
He said the
importation of the said arms also put him in conflict with security
operatives as they thought that he wanted to overthrow the Abacha
regime. “I was then out of Lagos and the
contractors contacted me and told me what was happening. I told them not
to worry and should not answer any question".
“I believe that the security operatives contacted
General Abacha who must have told them that he approved the purchase of
the ammunition. No one ever asked me or talked to me about this issue
till I retired from service,” he wrote.
On
Thursday, March 30, 2017, Bamaiyi launched his book, “Vindication of a
General,” a memoir of his experiences as Chief of Army Staff (COAS) and
intrigues of his incarceration.
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