REVEALED; Why ex–President Buhari stayed away from Babangida’s book launch in Abuja
Jonathan Vatsa, the former Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism in Niger State and a prominent chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has expressed little surprise at former President Muhammadu Buhari’s decision to skip the public presentation of General Ibrahim Babangida’s autobiography, ‘The Journey of Service’, in Abuja on Thursday.
Vatsa suggested that Buhari’s absence was rooted in lingering resentment over the 1985 coup that ousted him from power.
Speaking to reporters in Minna on Saturday, Vatsa emphasized that he would not rush to comment on the book, as he had already read it. He quipped that it would have been a world-changing event if Buhari had attended the launch.
Vatsa went on to allege that the memory of what he called the “mother of all betrayals” — referring to his detention by Babangida after the coup, which prevented him from bidding farewell to his late mother — still haunts Buhari.
The event, which took place in Abuja, was attended by a host of distinguished personalities, including President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan, military heads of state Yakubu Gowon and Abdulsalami Abubakar, as well as leaders from other African nations such as Ghana’s Akufo-Ado and Sierra Leone’s Ernest Koroma. Prominent Nigerian figures such as former Vice Presidents Atiku Abubakar, Yemi Osinbajo, Namadi Sambo, traditional rulers, and state governors were also in attendance.
Vatsa further reflected on his previous statements about Buhari’s disregard for Niger State during his two terms in office, reiterating that he had been vindicated by Buhari’s absence, despite the state’s overwhelming support for him in both of his presidential campaigns.
According to him, “the whole world knows that Niger State was made a scapegoat by former President Buhari because of IBB. For eight years he did not pay any serious official visit to the state, and no single federal project was executed in the state. The Baro port project, which recently generated some political heat in the state, was abandoned by Buhari, including all the federal road projects across the state.
“The people of the state were made to pay for sin they know nothing about. It was the case that when two elephants fight, the grass suffered. He sidelined the state just because of the sin of one person.”
When asked to comment on the book that has continued to generate reactions across the country, the former publicity secretary of the APC in the state said that he will comment on the book after digesting all the contents, stressing that “there are things that I am expecting from the book, so you people should wait until I read it, I will invite all of you when I am ready to comment on the book”, he added
