Ex-interim National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and former Osun State governor, Bisi Akande, said persons close to Chief Olusegun Obasanjo during his time as President were behind the killing of Bola Ige, the Attorney General of the Federation in the administration.
Ige was murdered in cold blood in his Ibadan residence in 2001 with his killers unknown till date. Akande in his recently released biography, “My Participation’ imputed the murder to some persons close to Obasanjo saying the ex-president’s circle became uncomfortable with alleged popularity of the victim.
The former governor of Osun state wrote: “I believe what brought problem for Uncle Bola was his charisma, his relentless pursuit of the common good and his magical popularity with the Yoruba people. I knew he might be in trouble the day I witnessed what the PDP leadership later dubbed ‘The Shame’ at the Liberty Stadium.
“I believe it was after that outing that some elements close to the president met and decided to deal with Bola Ige. The next time Obasanjo would enter that stadium was to participate in the burial ceremonies of Ige.
“There was enough evidence that the government of former president Obasanjo was reluctant to find the killers of Bola Ige.
“The man, who came hunting for us was President Olusegun Obasanjo, Ige’s friend for many years who became our relentless foe.
“He and Ige met in the late 1960s when both of them served in the government of then Colonel Adeyinka Adebayo, the second military ruler of the old West. Since then, Obasanjo had dug Ige’s path like an evil spirit. During his reign as military head of state, Ige gave him a wide berth, yet Obasanjo would not disappear from Ige’s path.”
