Babatunde (Tunde) Idiagbon, one of the few respected officers and former second-in-command during the military rule of Gen.Mohammadu Buhari, January 1, 1984- August 1987 died on March 24,1999. He was only 56 years old and reportedly collapsed in his home in Ilorin, Kwara State. Let's place the man within a historical context to achieve a better meaning regarding what I believe was a very remarkable and consequential life. First, Idiagbon, famous for his stern attitude, morose demeanor and iron-fist approach to governing
had a love-hate relationship with his countrymen. Initially, many felt he was too dictatorial and left no room for compassion for errant fellows.
Some, at the time, also felt his approach was right for Nigerians, an unusually boisterous group of people in their country.
Second, I believe that Nigeria benefitted and learned major lessons from the firm hands and watchful eyes of Idiagbon. Why? However shortlived, he contributed immensely to clean the mess and stinking indiscipline which continues to eat deep like a cancerous growth in the country's social, organizational, governmental and individual fabric.
Recall that shortly after his removal from office through the military coup which brought Gen. Ibrahim Babangida to power August 27, 1985, most Nigerians seemed to have missed Idiagbon's style and substance.
Third, his efforts imposed some sense of orderliness to most aspects of public life in Nigeria. In many ways, he improved Nigerians' attitude to work, sanitation and ethics. He led the national campaign known as War
Against Indiscipline, WAI. Streets, public and private buildings and other dirty areas and corners of every major city started to shine in the wake of WAI. WAI's mechanism rested on command, threat and actual
use of force and sanctions by Idiagbon's team. With WAI under his watch, Nigeria was cleaner, although some buildings owned by many poor
folks were callously smashed by bulldozers. After less than 5 months of being replaced by Babangida, Nigeria relapsed to dirt as usual. Ever since, mountains of rubbish struggle for attention with imported vehicles.
Fourth, he set a clear, firm tone for ruling (with his boss retired Gen. Muhammadu Buhari). Comparatively, retired Generals Obasanjo, Babangida and Nigeria's current ruler Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar
Buhari are quite different from the late Idiagbon. Where Obasanjo, Babangida and Abubakar employ wily tactics to deal with most issues and gradually revealing their intent as masking other numerous goals, Idiagbon never left you in doubt. His uncharitable critics say that's why
he did not survive in the system. Unlike Idiagbon, the other three had cheerful outlooks regardless of whatever was happening in (and to) the
country.
Fifth and significantly, Idiagbon did not leave office with tons and millions of Deutsche Marks, Pounds Sterling and the almighty U.S.Dollars as did the civilian men (and some women) whose removal from office he plotted. When compared with most of the now retired soldiers and politicians who overthrew the Buhari-Idiagbon regime to usher in the Babangida team and later the demonic kill-and-go squad of Abacha's, Idiagbon is positively etched in the minds of millions of his compatriots. I recall in the late 1980s while I was serving for Nigeria's National Youth Corps program in Ilorin, the city which was home to
Idiagbon, I was introduced to a very modest ice cream shop. The ice cream shop was said to be operated by Idiagbon's wife. In Nigeria, the wives of army officers, moreso the wife of a Nigerian General and the country's Number Two man, are more in the line of selling very expensive diamonds, trinkets and assorted designer wears; they are champions at awarding, forwarding and backwarding government contracts and
serving as the clearing houses for all manner of things which do not belong to their province. The wives of Nigeria's army Generals are served rather than serve ordinary folks and "idle civilians" like us especially through that fine, humble art of running a small ice cream parlor.
The Idiagbons' ice cream shop (I believe it's on Ibrahim Taiwo road) and their modest home remain fitting ethical symbols and metaphor for a man and a family who served without recourse to the economic
brigandage, economic looting and armed robbery we witness, daily in Nigeria, in the name of "governments."
Sixth, Nigerians will miss Idiagbon, among other fine if imperfect qualities, for proving, although by force and threat of sanction, that Nigerians can stand on a bus line, and indeed any line (INSIDE Nigeria), to wait their turn. Miracles will never end, my compatriots said, at the time. He proved conclusively that it's not in our stars to be disorderly.
The late patriot Idiagbon embodied the capacity for Nigeria's renewal. He, alongside other patriots like Mokwugo Okoye, Aminu Kano and millions of other patriots dead and alive, validate the fact that
Nigerians and Nigeria are not cursed to a bestial gamut of unethical damnation and wanton corruption. Even after leaving government, he refused to be "purchased" or used as prop for any regime's slimy games and uncouth shenanigans. Babatunde was not one, to the best of my knowledge, to be used by any regime, including the more-you-look-the- less-you-see regime of incumbent Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar.
Seventh, history will recall the late Idiagbon, son of a very modest Muslim family, as a nationalist, albeit an iron-surgeon in search of solutions for his ailing fatherland. Where his military colleagues flinched and became the triple-horned architects of economic decline and king toads of the moral swamp and corruption which have dwarfed Nigeria's destiny, Tunde Idiagbon had the gumption and courage to jail the terribly corrupt, the not-so-corrupt and their team of enablers.
Eight, as is commonplace with dictators, he had blanket solutions to all manner of ailments for the country and its citizenry: lock 'em up and whip 'em where necessary. He believed in Nigeria but doubted Nigerians. He believed, like Buhari (in his earlier years as military ruler)
that to cure Nigeria and Nigerians of their problems, he needed to reach the physical senses of Nigerians. For Buhari and Idiagbon (and Abacha, in this instance), the Igbo adage that 'the body hears more than the ear' was elevated to the cardinal theology for achieving
"discipline" and imposing ethics. Yet it is important to note that the concept of an "Ethical Revolution" in Nigeria was articulated for the country by an elder of the Presbyterian Church, author and Nigeria's former consul general to the U.S., Mazi Aggrey Kanu Oji. While Mazi Oji sought ethical re-socialization and positive cues achieved through institutional changes rather than raw military chastisement, Buhari and Idiagbon preferred to be feared rather just to be loved. Machiavelli would have winked and probably said: 'Those Nigerian Generals, disciples of The Prince, followers of my book....'
Also, on this issue of re-engineering political behavior, their methods reflected more of their training as soldiers, seeped in command and obey methods, than all the fine political socialization paradigms established by scholars of all climes, of all times. In removing the
civilian/elected government led by Alhaji Shehu Shagari, the twosome appeared to have halted a declining turn for Nigeria. Today, makes me wonder, if Shagari should not have "managed" Nigeria until the other "idle civilians", professional antagonists and tribalists changed their ways and Nigerian Police/politicians allowed a freer press to expose their excesses. Makes you, wonder, eh? Let's go back to Idiagbon, the
departed patriot.

story story

The president needs him as VP now!!!

Buh buhari chose a "vegetable" as a vice-president I wish dem success sha(not from ma mind)

Was he the Man that work with Buhari during his millitary regime? I'm sure Buhari is missing this guy now?

Life.

This man would be ashamed of what Buhari has become, a clown

Idiagbon, the man that never laugh nor smile.

Most of the attributes associated with Buharis character today arose as a rezult of Idiagbons strides as his deputy in the 80s. . Idiagbon in terms of his approach to governance was decisive, non-corrupt, nationalistic and above all, very very SERIOUS minded. He was the one that spear-headed WAI, and it was obvious he was desirous of improving nigeria at all cost. . Watching buhari blunder to no end today suggests that those who campaigned and voted for buhari did so basically because of the acheivements of Idiagbon as buharis deputy, as the current buhari has become not just a passive politician but also very willing to work with the kind of very corrupt politicians that will make Idiagbon vomit.

OREMUSSANCTUS:
Buh buhari chose a "vegetable" as a vice-president
I wish dem success sha(not from ma mind)

Tinubu chose Osinbajo for Buhari and for political reasons Buhari agreed.
Pastor Tunde Bakare (Yes that disciplined pastor that can face anyone and say it) was begged by Buhari to become his VP in CPC days. ...

Buhari loves actionable folks around him but when Jagaban decides baba chill while Oyegun and Osinbajo emerged ...... Baba still chill while Saraki/Dogara/Ekweremadu emerged only for some folks to say Baba shouldn't have chill oo.

I wish he's alive

He'll just be handed over the EFCC straight up

It is well

Meanwhile, read part three, you'll be shocked too

https://samueliyanu./2015/07/02/diary-of-a-regular-village-boy-3-the-evening-of-shocks/

owobokiri:
Most of the attributes associated with Buharis character today arose as a rezult of Idiagbons strides as his deputy in the 80s. . Idiagbon in terms of his approach to governance was decisive, non-corrupt, nationalistic and above very very SERIOUS minded. He was the one that spear-headed WAI, and it was obvious he was desirous of improving nigeria at all cost. . Watching buhari blunder to no end today suggests that those who campaigned and voted for buhari did so basically because of the acheivements of Idiagbon as buharis deputy, as the current buhari has become not just a passive politician but also very willing to work with the kind of very corrupt politicians that will make Idiagbon vomit.

You are absolutely right !!!
Took the words out of my mouth!!!
Tunde bakare would have also had a strong stance as a VP

That was then this is now

.

leke12:
Idiagbon, the man that never laugh nor smile.

I saw his documentary,

He said he smiles only when his wife gives birth and every new year...

jammani:
.

Is that all?

Buhari was gently overthrown by his kinsmen after drinking tea with them(even when he had intel, there is going to be a coup, the only thinghe did was ask IBB, walahi maradona, i hear fa u wan do ku for me?) meanwhile Idiagbon was in mecca when the coup happened.

All I see here is FORCE, FORCE and FORCE..... Military govt tho'

ibkgab001:
That was then this is now

Sadly, now feels like shiit.

Blackfire:
Buhari was gently overthrown by his kinsmen after drinking tea with them(even when he had intel, there is going to be a coup, the only thinghe did was ask IBB, walahi maradona, i hear fa u wan do ku for me?) meanwhile Idiagbon was in mecca when the coup happened.

Kontinu !!! #WeAreWatchingYou #ToryTela

Yoruba man making us proud everywhere

In spite of whatever achievements the administration may have achieved, their total disrespect of the rule of law, infringing on the constitutional rights of Nigerians, abuse of the 'god' power of being a dictator etc, stalled Nigeria's nascent democratic growth and sent us down another 16years of dictatorships and backwardness.

In the amended words of Toy story, 'you have not found a hero supporter in me'

#PeacefulNigeria
#UnitedNigeria

mistabiola:


Kontinu !!! #WeAreWatchingYou #ToryTela

.... 30 something years later, i posted the buhari story on NL, and someone who was intrested replied that i should continue the story with picture of three wizards with wearing mosquitoes glasses, abi mo ti continue ni

lanrema:
Yoruba man making us proud everywhere

Is there a tribe that isn't important to Nigeria? Stop the ethnic jingoism

Blackfire:


.... 30 something years later, i posted the buhari story on NL, and someone who was intrested replied that i should continue the story with picture of three wizards with wearing mosquitoes glasses, abi mo ti continue ni

LolLol

amaben2020:


Is there a tribe that isn't important to Nigeria? Stop the ethnic jingoism

every tribe is important to Nigeria. However, i am proud to be a Yoruba man Omo Ogun Ise ya!

lanrema:




every tribe is important to Nigeria. However, i am proud to be a Yoruba man Omo Ogun Ise ya!

be proud to be a Nigerian, it's way better