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Lt. Col Eboma and the Shagari coup by
Observations on The Coup Against Us, Lt. Col. Eboma - then commanding officer of the Abuja Garrison - mentioned in the article below "The Coup Against Us" is a Bendelite from Ika (Agbor area). He was detained and then retired from the Army by the Buhari regime for his loyalty to Shagari during the Abuja operation. I want to draw attention to this quote which describes Shagari's reaction to the radio broadcast by Abacha: "We did not know Brigadier Abacha and at that time, none of us even knew from what part of Nigeria he came, as the name Abacha did not ring a bell nor provide a clue to his ethnicity. The situation was still not clear and we decided it would not be advisable at that stage to return to Abuja nor remain in Keffi town." This reaction speaks volumes about the role of ethnicity in National Security thinking in Nigeria. (No surprise) The funny thing is that when Shagari first heard the radio announcement in Keffi, his pre occupation was with the ethnic background of the announcer (Abacha) oblivious - initially - to the paradox that the man who ensured his safety from northern conspirators (Bako et al) in Abuja was a southerner (Bendelite) from what some refer to as the Igbo speaking part of the Midwest. Abacha was a small framed quiet easily ignored non-descript Brigadier at the time - Commander of the 9th Brigade in Ikeja. Abacha as we know is Kanuri (an ethnic group in the far north) but the name - nonspecific as it sounds - could be misintepreted as "southern non-yoruba" or "middle belt". Col. Tunde Ogbeha (from Kogi) was later "punished" for mishandling the Abuja operation - allegedly leading to the death of Brig. Ibrahim Bako (who was Brigade Commander in Kaduna at the time) by being initially posted to Zimbabwe as Defence Adviser instead of a more cushy 'chop chop' job as a Governor. (Bako, like Buhari was from the far North) The second in command to Col Khaliel in Lagos at that time was Lt. Col Sabo Aliyu of 123 Battalion in Ikeja. He is a slim tall gentleman from Kano. Buhari eventually made him the substantive Brigade of Guards Commander - only to nearly lose his life when IBB struck against Buhari in August 1985. When IBB came to power, Sabo Aliyu was retired along with Mohammed Magoro - another Buhari loyalist. The Captain of the Guard in Abuja was not the only Captain that resisted the coup. The Captain of the Guard in Dodan Barracks (Ribadu Road) also resisted - ordered to do so by the Commander of the Dodan Barracks Garrison - Major Inyang from Cross River - on a tip off from Khaliel. But ultimately disconnected from the chain of high command (as a result of the arrest of Khaliel and Wushishi), they both caved in late on January 1st 1984. [Note: Khaliel was arrested along with his Brigade Major, Mike Iyorshe when they tried to go to 6 Bn to make inquiries] One little detail - Lt. Gen Wushishi, then Army Chief (from Niger state) was personally arrested by soldiers led by Brigadier IB Babangida, then Director of Army Staff Duties and Plans in AHQ. Babangida (also from Niger) got in to Wushishi's house because the guards at the gate knew him as a frequent visitor. In any case most guards in the houses of dignitaries at the time were posted from the Brigade of Guards. And Lt. Col Sabo Aliyu, acting for Khaliel who had just returned from abroad, had ensured that those posted for guard duty that night were pro-coup. Babangida gave Wushishi a piece of paper to sign saying he was voluntarily resigning as Army Chief, so that he (IBB) could effectively run all operations from the AHQ in league with Tunde Idiagbon (then Military Secretary). Many of the soldiers used for checkpoints in Lagos were trucked in from a battalion at Owode (in Ogun State) under Abacha's command. That night Babangida also personally went to State House Ribadu Road when the Captain of the guard refused to allow pro-coup armored cars from 243 Recce Battalion into the gates. They were all lined up along Ribadu and Obalende Roads like commercial transport waiting for loading! I have it on direct personal authority from a subaltern Tank Troop Commander at that time (who is now a Lt. Col.) that a frustrated Babangida gave a direct order that if the gates remained unopened by a certain time, State House Ribadu Road in Lagos was to be completely destroyed by shelling - oblivious to surrounding civilian houses in Obalende, even though Shagari was not there. IBB himself later became Head of State in Aug 1985. The Majors who went to Dodan Barracks to arrest Buhari (on IBB's behalf) destroyed one of the gates. But one of the accusations IBB made against Vatsa and others in March 1986 was that they planned (as a contingency) to bomb Dodan Barracks and Eko Bridge - obviously forgetting that he (IBB) had issued a similar order a few years before then in the effort to remove Shagari. And in 1990 his own order came to pass. Orkar, Mukoro and others did it - they shelled State House Ribadu Road as he had ordered in 1983 even though he (IBB) had already been spirited away to safety. [Some people think he gave the order]. NAO Brigade of Guards Hierarchy as of Dec 31, 1983: Brigade Commander - Col. Bello Khaliel (Kebbi) Garrison Commander (Dodan Barracks) Major Inyang (Cross River) Brigade Major - Major Mike Iyorshe (Benue) Battalion Commander (6 Battalion, Bonny Camp) Major Hebron Tuti (Adamawa?) Battalion Commander (123 Battalion, Ikeja) Lt. Col Sabo Aliyu (Kano) Battalion Commander (93 Battalion, Ojo Cantonment) Major Alaiyemola (Kwara) Where are they today? Khaliel - current Minister for Water Resources under Obasanjo Inyang - retired (don't know exactly when, but by Buhari/IBB) Iyorshe - executed by IBB in Mar 1986 with Vatsa Tuti - later retired voluntarily as a Brigadier in the early nineties. Never held a political appointment. Sabo Aliyu - compulsorily retired by IBB in 1985 Alaiyemola - died suddenly of a mysterious illness while still at Ojo cantonment Eboma - lives a quiet life in retirement Tunde Ogbeha - Senator from Kogi Ibrahim Bako - Killed by loyal troops on Dec 31, 1983 IBB - took over from Buhari in Aug 1985; stepped aside in 1993; now a political backbencher. May be a candidate for Presidency Idiagbon - now dead from 'illness'. Overthrown with Buhari in 1985 Abacha - took over from Shonekan in Nov 1993. Died during sex in 1998 Wushishi - now a prominent member of Arewa Consultative Forum Buhari - overthrown in 1985; rehabilitated by Abacha as Chair of PTF; now a social critic (ACF?). May be a candidate for Presidency
The Military Interruption The Coup Against Us, Former President Shehu Shagari explains how and why the military seized power from the civilian rulers of the Second Republic on the last day of December 1983-
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