Ufot Essien
17 December 2000
opinion
Lagos — Long after the inglorious days of the Abacha regime when Major Al Mustapha reportedly commanded generals, the latter still appear yet to recover from the strong boy's daze.
For the fun-loving Lagosians, they will ever be grateful to the President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo who in his wisdom decided not only to set up the Justice Chukwudifu Oputa Commission on Human Rights violation by past military rulers of the country, but also made it possible for Lagos residents to have the privilege of watching live the commission's proceedings. At best, besides affording Lagosians the opportunity of meeting 'in the flesh' the powers that be of yesteryears-the men (soldiers) who held the nation ransom for some years, it equally gives them the chance to confirm some of the bizzarre stories they used to hear; particularly of the fairy-like tale of a major who commanded generals; one before whom generals bow and tremble like a pack of timid pupils before their colonial headmaster.
Little wonder that daily, Lagosians troop to the venue of the Oputa commission and despite the running battle they have with the police and other security operatives to find themselves a space to watch the proceedings, they never give up. They equally dare the long dreaded sessions characterised by hunger and thirst and perhaps, stress and patiently watch events unfold daily at the commission from 9am to about 5pm without a break.
But they don't care. They appear to bother little about the stress or the long sessions even as they don't mind the hunger, the thirst and all. Daily, they gather to watch men who once upon time, trod mother-earth like demi- gods, now inter-mingle freely with common Nigerians, as if it were in a play. Perhaps, of all that appear before Oputa or have anything to do with the commission, the generals are a delight to watch. And they are many. They include: Lt. Generals Oladipo Diya, ex Chief of General Staff (CGS); Ishaya Bamaiyi, Chief of Army Staff under the late Gen. Sani Abacha; Major General Abdulkarim Adisa, former Works and Housing minister; Patrick Aziza, erstwhile Communications minister; Bashir Magashi, Chris Garba; and Brigadier General Jeremiah Useni, ex- Federal Capital Territory Minister among others. And of course also, is Air Vice Marshal Idi Musa who also belongs to that category. They all walk the venue of the commission like the mere mortals they are as if oblivious of their former status and carriage. They freely socialise with lesser Nigerians and indeed, respectfully or rather dutifully subject themselves before civil authourities. Perhaps, they don't have a choice.
But of all, the stories that will be told both now and in a long time to come, will be the story of how the generals was all bossed by a common Major- Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, a rather cranky-looking fragile, but smart, wise and intelligent young Nigerian who the Generals admit, used to boss and intimidate them all.
Before this time, Nigerians had watched what is popularly now referred to as the coup video in which Gen. Diya among the other Generals, were said to have been seen weeping on the feet of Major Al-Mustapha and passionately begging him to please help them see Gen. Sani Abacha to have mercy on them.
There are many other stories. Gen Diya told some of them himself. He narrated, for instance, how on four occasions the Provisional Ruling Council met and took a decision to release Chief MKO Abiola who was then detained by the Abacha Junta for demanding the mandate he claimed Nigerians gave him when they voted massively for him in the annulled June 12 presidential election; but how to his chagrin, Major Al Mustapha single-handedly reversed the PRC's decision on each of the occasions.
And yet he related another pathetic one the night he was arrested of how he was later taken to Al Mustapha's office only to meet on arrival, all the generals aforementioned gather in the young Major's office. He lamented, "He (Mustapha) was in charge. I will even call him the number one man. Insisting that even Gen. Abacha was under Mustapha's spell.What is more? The ex- CGS confessed on Friday that even his personal staff including his security were all appointed by Al Mustapha and that he used to change same on a weekly basis, or at five days interval or indeed, as it pleased him. Al Mustapha himself admitted that besides the Strike Force, he ran 16 other security outfits at the Asso Rock Villa under him, making him alone the head of 17 units. Similarly, all the Identity cards of every operational security at the villa bore his signature.
Also, while Counsel to Major Mustapha, Bala Ibn Na Allah was cross examining Diya on Friday, he tendered a document, which happened to be a letter supposedly written by the members of Diya's family, while the latter was still in prison and sent to Major Mustapha pleading with him as the only one who could helprelease their bread winner from the hangman's noose.
Even at the commission's sitting, Gen Diya repeatedly wondered aloud that he was still at a loss as to how Major Mustapha managed to wrench the government from their hands. They (Abacha and himself) started well, but he would not just know when things slipped from their hands.
Incidentally, while Diya, apparently still trying to recover from the daze Mustapha's excessive powers subjected him, strives to maintain a healthy distance from him, the other generals flock around Mustapha as though he were still in charge. They greet him with maximum respect as though they were still afraid of his colours.
Regretably, up till now, the generals do not appear to have grown out of Major Al Mustapha is spell and control. One actually said the fear of Mustapha was the beginning of political wisdom. Some of them still greet Mustapha as SS2 students do their seniors in the SS3. Such that the Major has remained the hero of the day at the commission. Some of the Generals do not appear to have grown out of the fear of Mustapha.
One of the Counsels actually said, on the night Diya was arrested and taken to Mustapha's office in Asso Rock that he (Diya) defaecated into his trousers out of fear for the major in the presence of the other Generals. In anger, the other Generals left him alone in the office to rot in the mess he had created. Ostensibly piqued by the frequent reference to Major Mustapha as the man solely in charge, the Counsel to Gen. Diya, Justice Kehinde Sofola(SAN) sought to know the young man's qualification perhaps to establish whether he was actually capable of ruling the nation he was said to have done. The young man said something about finishing the secondary school. And the SAN's follow up question was: Did you have the school Certificate? To which Mustapha simply replied: I think I had school Certificate".
But in all, the young Nigerian's intelligence was not in doubt. Besides, he is smart, very smart and articulate. Full of airs and very self confident.
Watch him in a warm handshake with the Generals and you would think he is the senior man, despite his smallsih frame. Watch him relate or exchange notes with the former Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Bamayi and you would think two classmates are doing business. Though in all, the young man in question denies ever being in charge, but rather that he was a very loyal officer, always doing the biddings of his superior officers, always respectful to his seniors including ofcourse, the Generals. This, he said, made them all like him.
But would someone remind the Generals that those inglorious days when things were upside down were over? Would someone plead with them to put the past where it belongs and regain their composure? Simply, Mustapha is no longer in charge and therefore no point to continue to treat him with undue respect.
However, watching what is going on gives Lagosians, nay, Nigerians an insight into that inglorious past when men wore their sandals on their heads. A sad reminder of the state the nation's military had degenerated. When boys became the master of men and Generals crumble before mere majors. A past that needs be put to rest. And that is the tall task before the Oputa commission: to reconcile that past and its players with the present.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2000 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
