Continuation The former President, characteristically, waxed pontifical when he declared that the younger generation of leaders under 50years has betrayed the nation because they lacked integrity. He mentioned the likes of Atiku, whom he said he picked as his deputy but wassoon to “show his true colour”. Obasanjo also took on Bola Ahmed Tinubu, referring to his controversial scholarship and academic qualification, insisting that it was notdifferent from the scandal which led to the removal of Speaker Imam Salisu Buari in 1999. However, what Obasanjo did not mention was the fact that he fought tooth and nail to retain Buari as Speaker of the House of Representatives, even in the face of Buari’s glaring folly of claiming what he was not. Back to Atiku! Obasanjo launched a sweeping diatribe against Nigeria’s younger generation of politicians whom he accused of lacking the integrity, character and credibility to lead Nigeria to progress and development. According to Obasanjo, he didn’t know Atiku well enough and that the former Vice President had not met his expectation as a credible successor. Now, at the risk of holding brief for the former Vice President, the questions are: Is this claim altogether correct? Was Obasanjo trying to be economical with the truth? What degree of familiarity was Obasanjo talking about? At what point did he realize his knowledge of Atiku was not comfortable enough? Did he complain to Atiku at any point that this lack of familiarity could disqualify the former Vice President from succeeding him? What degree of personal familiarity could qualify a politician to be nominated to become a running mate to a presidential candidate of apolitical party? What is the length of time needed by one politician to trust another? Did Obasanjo not invite former governor of Rivers State, Sir PeterOdili, to Aso Rock Presidential Villa for morningprayers after which the former broke the news to the latter that he should drop out of the presidential contest? Could all those Obasanjo bullied out of the presidential contest be described as lacking integrity too? As earlier stated, contrary to Obasanjo’s claim, he and Atiku had met twice closely before 1999. Atiku and Obasanjo In any case, pray, Could an enemy have visited an adversary to warn him about the imminent risks to his life or freedom? Could an enemy also have extended such goodwill fraternal visit? How many years would an individual need to know a man who had wanted to put him out of harm’s way? Yet again, destiny played a fast, very fast one on both men. Sunday Vanguard learnt from very authoritative sources that Atiku it was who arranged for and warned Obasanjo, as an inmate (a prisoner), not to allow himself to be injected or his blood taken. Sunday Vanguard gathered from very impeccable sources that “this warning became necessary following confirmed reports that the late Major Akinyemiand Shehu Musa Yar’Adua were both injected with lethal viruses that eventually led to their untimely deaths”. In fact, dependable sources close to the family of Major Akinyemi confided in Sunday Vanguard that the sentiments being expressedin favour of those who operated at the very top echelon of the security machinery of the late General Sani Abacha junta is misplaced because the officers devised very sinister waysof eliminating those they considered as troublesome subjects. In the instance of Akinyemi, the now infamousmilitary medical doctor through whom a seriesof eliminations was carried out, walked into his cell in the company of another serving military officer and demanded to extract bloodfrom the incarcerated Major. He refused. They pressed him. “But he maintained”, according to a source close to the family, “that he had neither complained of any ailment nor was he afflicted by any. His refusal almost led to a scuffle. But the serving military officer simply looked outside the cell, nodded to two body guards who were waiting in toe, and gave them instructions to subdue Akinyemi. “Worse still, rather than extract the so-callled blood from the Major, the military doctor brought out a syringe that was almost filled with some form of solution. Having been held down by the bodyguards, the doctor injected the Major”. Sunday Vanguard was made to understand that it was later learnt that the solution injected into the body of Major Akinyemi was nothing but the Human Immuno-deficiency Virus, otherwise known as HIV. By the time the Major was released from prison, it had developed into almost full-blown Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, AIDS. He gave his life to Christ afterwards and began a ministry which ministered to prisoners. Sunday Vanguard was told that during one of his ministrations, Major Akinyemi returned to Kirikiri where he again met with the serving military officer who superintended the administration of the lethal injection on him but was now doing his own time.
Posted on: Sun, 18 Aug 2013 04:58:10 +0000
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