General Ishola Williams (rtd), a prominent figure in the Nigerian Army during the military era, has asserted that, contrary to claims made in a recently published memoir by former Head of State General Ibrahim Babangida, the late General Sani Abacha was groomed for leadership prior to the controversial annulment of the June 12, 1993 election.
General Williams, who previously served as Chief of Defence Training and Planning, shared his insights during an appearance on the Friday edition of Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, a socio-political program broadcast on Channels Television.
He was referenced in Babangida’s 420-page autobiography, A Journey in Service: An Autobiography of Ibrahim Babangida, which was launched at a well-attended event in Abuja on February 20, 2025.
In his memoir, which has garnered a mix of criticism and praise, Babangida, commonly referred to as IBB, acknowledged for the first time that the late philanthropist and advocate for democracy, Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola, was the legitimate winner of the June 12, 1993 election.
While IBB accepted responsibility for the annulment, he attributed the decision to Abacha, claiming that the latter acted without his consent.
On page 296 of the book, whilst he described the ripple of reactions that trailed the annulment of the election adjudged the freest and fairest in Nigeria’s history, IBB said, “Within the military leadership, there was palpable outrage. The best of us, like Lt-General Salihu Ibrahim and Major-General Ishola Williams, were alarmed, and Colonel Abubakar Dangiwa Umar threatened to resign.”
To shed light on the events that unfolded, General Williams reflected on past occurrences, asserting that IBB had indeed prepared Abacha for succession prior to the election’s annulment. He further described the transition government led by the late businessman Ernest Sonekan as merely a façade. Major Williams indicated that he resigned following the annulment of the June 12 election.
General Williams recounted attending a meeting with fellow generals, including IBB and Abacha, where the succession plan was discussed.
To shed light on the events that occurred, General Williams reflected on experiences. He stated that IBB had groomed Abacha to take over before the election was annulled. Furthermore, General Williams described the transition government led by the late businessman Ernest Sonekan as merely a façade. He mentioned that he resigned following the annulment of the June 12 election.
General Williams recounted attending a meeting with fellow generals, where both IBB and Abacha were present, during which the plan was devised.
Gen Williams said, “Gen Babangida forgot to mention that he used to call Gen Abacha the Khalipha, which meant that one way or the other, he was encouraging Gen Abacha to succeed him.
“And to a certain extent, in my conversation with Gen Babangida, just before he stepped aside, one midnight in Minna, he could not answer a question that I asked him: ‘Did you have a blood oath with Abacha that he would succeed you?’ I asked him that question, but he refused to answer. In Minna, one-on-one, at the Presidential Guest House in Minna.
“Before that, there was a group of civilian governors in his regime that came to visit him and encouraged him not to hand over. It was when they left that I asked him the question and told him not to mind the governors, that the best thing is for him to leave.”
Gen. Williams stated that he composed a letter to IBB in August 1993, indicating that the most prudent course of action for the military would be to transfer power to civilian governance.
“I told him that we were preparing to receive him in Minna with full military honours after he stepped aside. And I did that. I was a Commander in Minna at that time. He came to Minna with his wife. Many officers came with him. These officers knew that he had stepped aside but put pressure on him to appoint a new CDS (chief of defense staff) and service chiefs.
“He (IBB) appointed new service chiefs, and when those came to tell me, I said you are not going to last very long… Shortly after that, Gen Abacha flew in, met with Gen Babangida in his house, and when he came out, he changed all of them (service chiefs).
“There was a meeting before the interim government where officers from Brigadier General and above of the Armed Forces met in the Villa. The late Attorney General (Clement) Akpamgbo was the only civilian at the meeting.
“When the discussion started about June 12, I was alarmed, and I said: ‘What are we discussing? I thought we came here to discuss the handover process.’ Gen Abacha was sitting to my right, and in between us was Gen Diya. Gen Abacha said Ishola didn’t talk like that, but I said we should be discussing handing over, not annulment. On what basis will the election be annulled? But nobody answered me.
“It was only Gen Ikonne who supported me. By that time, the election had not been annulled yet, but the election had taken place.”
Gen. Williams said a decree for a transition period was designed at the meeting by Babangida.
“I said we don’t need the transitional government, but it was ruled out. The whole decree was planned in such a way so that Abacha could take over,” he said.
