Born on September 20, 1943, Nigeria’s
military head of state from November 17,
1993, to June 8, 1998, died at the age of
54. Here are a few things history will nott
forget about the military head of state
whose regime was a threat to anyone
opposing his government.

1. Abacha is said to be the most successful
coup plotter of all time. He was involved in
every successful coup in Nigeria’s history.
He single-handedly planned and executed
the coup that brought General
Muhammadu Buhari to power in 1982 and
the one that removed him in 1985.
2. The deceased former military head of
state was described as an ‘epitome of
military discipline’ in some quarters. This
is as a result of the fact that even with his
‘power-drunk’ administration, he did not
accept a single political appointment
throughout his military career.
3. Abacha is the first Nigerian soldier to
get to the rank of a full General without
skipping a single rank.
4. Although Abacha’s administration was
very controversial with lots of human rights
abuses, his administration was the first to
record unprecedented economic
achievements. There was an increase in the
country’s foreign exchange reserves and a
reduction in Nigeria’s external debt. Even
the military ruler’s close associates called
him a ‘good manager’.
5. Abacha is known as a man of “few
words and deadly actions”. He did not say
too much but acted instead. He shut down
the media in the country, civil rights groups
and pro-democracy campaigns during his
brutal regime.
6. Abacha had quite lot of scandals. He
hanged the Ogoni activist Ken Saro-Wiwa,
jailed Moshood Abiola and Olusegun
Obasanjo, and Wole Soyinka was charged
with treason in absentia.
7. Abacha and his family looted a total of
£5 billion from the country’s coffers. No
wonder he was tagged the fourth most
corrupt leader in history in 2004.

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