The former military head of state, Gen. Yakubu Gowon went down memory lane yesterday to give reasons why he, together with Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, former head of the Interim National Government (ING), Chief Ernest Shonekan and some other eminent Nigerians played key roles to save former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo from being impeached by the national assembly.
Gowon who stated this in Abuja at the Maj. Gen. Emmanuel Olumuyiwa Abisoye Foundation lecture, tagged: ‘Nation Building or Nation Fragmentation: Reflections on 20 Years of Post-Military Rule in Nigeria’, where he serves is its chairman, board of trustees, said the action was informed by the need to save Obasanjo’s successors from recurring embarrassment from the legislature.
He said Obasanjo was able to complete his tenure as president because of key roles they played by talking to both the then speaker, House of Representatives, Mr. Ghali Na’Abbah and the senate president, Mr. Pius Anyim, to let peace reign.
He added that their action was borne out of the need to preserve the seat of the president stressing that if the lawmakers were allowed to have their way, similar treatment would have been meted out to Obasanjo’s successors
Staring at Na’Abbah, who was also a guest at the event, Gowon maintained that their intervention had brought dignity and stability to occupants of the Presidential Villa.
“I can assure you that we had some very important discussions and I know that we had to appeal to him and the President of the Senate not to impeach Obasanjo. Of course, because of the respect they had for us, they listened to us.
“This is because if we had allowed them to impeach the president at that time of our democracy, no president in Nigeria would escape being harassed. So, I thank you very much for listening to us.
“Like me, the late Emmanuel Abisoye chose to join the Nigerian military in preference to other careers which he was eminently qualified. His achievements in his military career showed that he took the right decision to serve his country.
“As young as we were then, our ideals were not self-seeking. Rather they were focused on the growth and development of a strong, stable, viable and indivisible nation.
“As his commander-in-chief during the Nigerian crisis of 1967 to 1970, I found his scorecard commendable; he fought gallantly, courageously,” said Gowon.
