On the 21st of December 1997, the government of General Sani Abacha arrested some top army officials including his second-in-Command, Lieutenant General Donaldson Oladipo Oyeyinka Diya. Others included Major General Adeniyi Tajudeen Olanrewaju, Major General Abdulkarim Adisa, and eight others for allegedly plotting to violently overthrow the Abacha government.

Only one week before his arrest, Diya had narrowly missed becoming the victim of a bomb explosion at Abuja Airport, It was the 5th time an attempt would be made on his life.

Abacha's critics dismissed the coup plot as part of his machinations to marginalize and crack down on potential challengers to his presidential ambitions.

While many believed that the much-publicized coup was a plot by Abacha to eliminate Diya, who was gaining popularity among the elite and opposition parties for his moderate views on the Nigerian situation, there was indeed a palace coup attempt against the military dictator, but Diya was ultimately setup and betrayed by his co-conspirators.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vEGAxh5Vjc

Not even Generalfeldmarschall Friedrich Paulus did what he did at Stalingrad. So shameful.

Diya was no hero. He was human, tricked into a situation he wouldnt have had the courage to initiate.