General Obasanjo (Abiola’s fellow Egba kinsmen), who never thought much of MKO’s political ambition or the June 12 election results, met again with Yaradua. He began to float the idea of an interim government as a way of ensuring that Babangida is pushed out of power. He reached out to Chief Tony Anienih, the Chairman of SDP and Yaradua’s staunch loyalist, and they began to tinker with the interim government option that was floated by Obasanjo….
Massive protests started as the public’s reaction to the annulment.
As pro-democracy groups led by Dr. Beko Ransome Kuti’s Campaign For Democracy continue their protests in Lagos and all over the country, heavy military clampdown under General Sani Abacha continued, as he subtly worked towards capturing power. Meanwhile, in attempting to extricate himself from his political lockjump, IBB reached out to the leadership of the two political parties – NRC and SDP;
After several underhanded dealings involving multiple Ghana-Must-Go bags, SDP that won the election and NRC, somehow reached a joint decision overnight on Wednesday 7th of July 1993, which was fully supported by General Shehu Musa Yaradua.
Professor Omoh Omoruyi, completely helpless over Babangida’s inconsistencies following the annulment, watched the charade of different “Consultative meetings” with traditional leaders from all over the country, while the Lagos group under General Abacha strengthened their grip on power, as they monitored the entire event closely.
Babangida continued his tight-rope games of survival in office – beyond August 27th (the official expiration of his government); in a joint session of the national assembly, he publicly announced that he will be stepping aside.
While opposition from every quarter began to mount, Abacha played his first major move in his grasp for power. He tipped off Abiola and informed him of a security report that there is an assassination plot on his life. He, therefore, urged him to flee the country that very night until everything dies down.
Different political games continued while Abacha hedged closer and closer to power.
This tells the high-stake maneuverings of how Chief Ernest Shonekan became the interim President of Nigeria as Babangida is forced – by public opinion and the threat of a military strike – to permanently step aside; while General Sanni Abacha made a vain attempt at capturing the levers of power by taking absolute control of the military.
As Shonekan began consolidating his position, Abacha continued to garner support within the army for an eventual military takeover, while Abiola returns to the country in so much pump and fanfair. General Yaradua and Co met with Abacha as he schemed for the dissolution of both SDP and NRC…
Popular opposition to Ernest Shonekan’s interim national government began to grow massively. The police began an intense security clampdown on the Pro-democracy protesters.
All the while, Abiola kept reaching out to groups opposing his mandate, particularly the Yaradua group. The battleline shifted to the courts, where MKO demands that Shonekan’s interim national government be nullified…..
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