Akib Abiola is a frontline activist
and a protege of Moshood
Abiola, the winner of the
annulled 1993 Presidential
Election. He was one of the
founding members of the
defunct National Democratic
Coalition, NADECO. In this
interview, Mr. Akib spoke to
PREMIUM TIMES
about his
relationship with Tinubu and
how Mr. Tinubu betrayed
members of NADECO and US-
Nigeria relations.

PT: You and the leader of
the APC, Bola Tinubu seem
to come way back. However
you added that Tinubu
betrayed all those who
worked with him in
NADECO. Tell us about
what happened. Did you
choose to work for
Jonathan during the
election to spite Tinubu or
to settle old scores with
him. Or is it because you
don’t trust him. What kind
of a person is Tinubu?
Akib: I have known Bola
Tinubu since 1993. If we are to mention two proteges of the late MKO Abiola, it would be Bola Tinubu and myself. I first met Bola Tinubu in Jos in 1993 during the SDP convention.
After the convention we were
at the airport on our way back
to Lagos. There was only one
seat left on the plane. MKO
gave money to Tinubu and
asked me to join him on the
flight back to Lagos.
In 1994, I received a call from
Shola Ogunbode, who was a
strong member of NDM and
who was also running Tinubu’s
gas station in Washington DC
for him at the time. He told me
(Egbon….uncle) was deported
from the JFK Airport and that
the first time was at Dulles
Airport and they needed my
assistance to get him a visa.
Shola knew that I knew some
people at the State
Department because of my
employment with a U.S.
Agency.
I called Ed Atkins immediately
who asked me to meet him at
his office the following
morning. Ed had drafted a
letter that he wanted me to put
on the letter head of NDM. In
the letter he had elevated
Tinubu to the status of Prof.
Wole Soyinka and that if Tinubu
was not given visa, U.K. was
about to deport him to Nigeria
and if he is deported to Nigeria, he would be executed. He gave me the fax number to the U.S.
Consulate General to U.K and
his phone number and asked
me to fax the letter to him and set up an appointment for Tinubu directly for the next day.
This was how Tinubu received
his asylum visa. This
information can be verified
with the State Department and the U.S. Consulate office in U.K.
Tinubu has the tendency not to reciprocate favours to those who help him. If you look around him today, you will hardly see any of the original members of NADECO except Lai Mohammed. He has not helped any of the guys who helped him in Washington DC. I have visited him about four
times at his house, not once
did he offered me a glass of
water to drink. When I told him I wanted to run for the Senate under his party’s platform, he snubbed me. I have heard the
same story from all the people
that helped him back in the
days.
I spoke to Tinubu last year and I asked him why do you treat me as if you don’t know me and every time I came to see you, you are always snubbing me and you don’t have time for me. He apologized and blamed it on the pressure of his position and he also claimed that most of the time, his assistants don’t pass my text messages to him.
I think Tinubu has become a
lightening rod in Nigerian
politics. He is a political genius.
He knows the game very well.
He cannot be ignored. He is
book smart and street smart.
Which is a dangerous
combination for anyone who
may try to undermine him.
Buhari needs Tinubu more than Tinubu needs Buhari. Right now, Tinubu is holding the ace card, the trump card, the joker card in Nigerian politics. He can win the hand at any time by pulling out his trump card.
Overnight, he can make the
majority party become the
minority party and can single
handily make the minority
party to become the majority
party. He can use the media,
his international connections
and his followers and the area
boys to achieve his objectives
and goals.
I have no scores to settled with Tinubu. We are sons of the same political father….the late MKO Abiola.

K

R

Interesting but.... the man appears to be talking from both sides of the mouth. My opinion though.