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General '''Sani Abacha''' (20 September 1943 in [[Kano]] – 8 June 1998 in [[Abuja]]) A [[kanuri]] from [[borno]] by tribe,he was born breed up in [[kano]] in nigeria. he was a [[Nigerian military]] leader and politician. He was the [[List of Presidents of Nigeria|''de facto'' President]] of [[Nigeria]] from 1993 to 1998.<ref>Paden, John N. (2005) ''Muslim Civic Cultures and Conflict Resolution'', [[Brookings Institution]] Press. p. 240. ISBN 0-8157-6817-6.</ref> He is noted for being a monumental [[kleptocrat]] and a notorious dictator whose regime executed political opponents, notably [[Ken Saro-Wiwa]]. The Abacha family is regarded as [[organised crime]] by the [[Switzerland|Swiss]] authorities.<ref>http://www.newstimeafrica.com/archives/8904</ref> |
General '''Sani Abacha''' (20 September 1943 in [[Kano]] – 8 June 1998 in [[Abuja]]) A [[kanuri]] from [[borno]] by tribe (he was not borno in Borno, o),he was born breed up in [[kano]] in nigeria. he was a [[Nigerian military]] leader and politician. He was the [[List of Presidents of Nigeria|''de facto'' President]] of [[Nigeria]] from 1993 to 1998.<ref>Paden, John N. (2005) ''Muslim Civic Cultures and Conflict Resolution'', [[Brookings Institution]] Press. p. 240. ISBN 0-8157-6817-6.</ref> He is noted for being a monumental [[kleptocrat]] and a notorious dictator whose regime executed political opponents, notably [[Ken Saro-Wiwa]]. The Abacha family is regarded as [[organised crime]] by the [[Switzerland|Swiss]] authorities.<ref>http://www.newstimeafrica.com/archives/8904</ref> |
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==Political life== |
==Political life== |
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Revision as of 18:37, 25 November 2010
General Sani Abacha | |
|---|---|
| File:Sabacha.jpg | |
| 10th Head of State of Nigeria | |
| In office November 17, 1993 – June 8, 1998 | |
| Preceded by | Ernest Shonekan |
| Succeeded by | Abdulsalami Abubakar |
| Chief of Army Staff (Nigeria) | |
| In office August 1985 – August 1990 | |
| Preceded by | Ibrahim Babangida |
| Succeeded by | Salihu Ibrahim |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 20 September 1943 Kano, Nigeria |
| Died | 8 June 1998 (aged 54) Abuja, Nigeria |
| Political party | none (military) |
| Spouse | Maryam Abacha |
General Sani Abacha (20 September 1943 in Kano – 8 June 1998 in Abuja) A kanuri from borno by tribe (he was not borno in Borno, o),he was born breed up in kano in nigeria. he was a Nigerian military leader and politician. He was the de facto President of Nigeria from 1993 to 1998.[1] He is noted for being a monumental kleptocrat and a notorious dictator whose regime executed political opponents, notably Ken Saro-Wiwa. The Abacha family is regarded as organised crime by the Swiss authorities.[2]
Political life
Abacha was commissioned in 1963, after he had attended the Mons Defence Officers cadet Training College in Aldershot, England. Before then, he had attended the Nigerian Military Training College in Kaduna. He took part in the countercoup of July 1966, from the conceptual stage, and may have been a participant in the Lagos or Abeokuta phases of the January 1966 coup. He was also a prominent figure in three coup d'etats of later decades, the first two of which brought and removed General Muhammadu Buhari from power in 1983. When General Ibrahim Babangida was named President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 1985, Abacha was named Chief of Army Staff. He was later appointed Minister of Defence in 1990.[3][4]
Abacha took over power from the caretaker government of Chief Ernest Shonekan, who was put into place by General Ibrahim Babangida after his annulment of the 12 June 1993 elections (won by Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola), this caused a massive popular uproar, which in turn caused untold hardship for millions of Nigerians.
Human rights abuses
Abacha's government was accused of human rights abuses, especially after the hanging of Ogoni activist Ken Saro-Wiwa by the Oputa Commission (only one of several executions of Ogoni activists opposed to the exploitation of Nigerian resources by the multinational petroleum company, Royal Dutch Shell Group); Abiola and Olusegun Obasanjo were jailed for treason, and Wole Soyinka charged in absentia with treason.[5] His regime suffered stiff opposition internally and externally by pro-democracy activists who made the regime unpopular, and responded by banning political activity in general and by controlling the press in particular; a significant fraction of the military was purged. Abacha surrounded himself with approximately 3,000 armed men loyal to him.[5] His government compared to other Nigerian governments was characterised by an inconsistent foreign policy: He supported the Economic Community of West African States and sent Nigerian troops to Liberia and Sierra Leone to restore democracy to those countries while denying it at home.[5] Abacha scoffed at the threat of economic sanctions on account of the world's dependence on petroleum, of which Nigeria is a major producer.[6]
Despite being repeatedly condemned by the U.S. State Department,[7] Abacha did have a few ties to American politics. In 1997, Senator James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma) traveled to Nigeria to meet with Abacha as a representative of "The Family", a group of evangelical Christian politicians and civic leaders. Abacha and The Family had a business and political relationship from that point until his death.[8][9]
Death
Abacha died in June 1998 while at the presidential villa in Abuja in the company of Jeremiah Useni who was Chief of Staff from 1997 to 1998 and one Musa Abdullahi, who sources close to the military junta claimed was the unofficial strategist and mastermind of Abacha's plan to transform himself into a democratically-elected dictator. He was buried on the same day, according to Muslim tradition, without an autopsy, fuelling speculations that he may have died from constipation.[10] There was an allegation that the prostitutes were imported from either India or Egypt. {{citation}}: Empty citation (help)
After his death, Maj. Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, Nigeria's defence chief of staff, was sworn in as the country's head of state. Abubakar had never before held public office and was quick to announce a transition to democratic civilian rule, which led to the election of President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Abacha was married to Maryam Abacha and had seven sons and three daughters.[11]
False usage of Sani Abacha's name by advance fee fraud conmen
The names of Sani Abacha, his wife Maryam, and son Mohammed[12] are often used in advance fee fraud (419) scams; he is "identified" in scam letters as the source for "money" that does not exist.[13][14]
References
- ^ Paden, John N. (2005) Muslim Civic Cultures and Conflict Resolution, Brookings Institution Press. p. 240. ISBN 0-8157-6817-6.
- ^ http://www.newstimeafrica.com/archives/8904
- ^ Oyewole, A. (1987) Historical Dictionary of Nigeria, Scarecrow Press. p. 385. ISBN 0-8108-1787-X.
- ^ http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9389478 "Abacha, Sani."
- ^ a b c "Abacha, Sani." Encyclopædia Britannica. 3 February 2007
- ^ "Shakedown" by Kenneth Timmerman
- ^ Shapiro, Bruce. "Return of the Ugly American" http://www.salon.com. November 9, 1999.
- ^ Sharlet, Jeff. "Junkets for Jesus" Mother Jones, November/December 2010
- ^ "A Different Perspective On 'The Family' And Uganda" NPR.org. December 22, 2009
- ^ Weiner, Tim (11 July 1998). "U.S. Aides Say Nigeria Leader Might Have Been Poisoned". The New York Times. Retrieved 9 April 2010.
- ^ "Newsmaker Profiles: Sani Abacha Nigerian President," CNN
- ^ "Nigeria recovers Abacha's cash". BBC News. 1998-11-10. Retrieved 2006-10-21.
- ^ Zuckoff, Mitchell. "The Perfect Mark." The New Yorker. [1], page 3.
- ^ Who wants to be a millionaire? - An online collection of Nigerian scam mails
External links
- "Abacha dies at 54" - BBC
| Queen (1960–1963) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| President of the First Republic (1963–1966) | ||
| Military regime (1966–1979) | ||
| President of the Second Republic (1979–1983) | ||
| Military regime (1983–1999) | ||
| President of the Fourth Republic (from 1999) | ||
*Civilian; headed transition to abortive Third Republic | ||
| Ministers of Defence |
|  |
|---|---|---|
| Ministers of State for Defence (junior minister) | ||