Major al-Mustapha bombshell:M.K.O Abiola was murdered by "powers that be"

Special to USAfrica The Newspaper
NigeriaCentral.comand USAfricaonline.com

The Nigerian Human Rights commission led by the honorable retiredJustice Chukwudifu Oputa came closer to a highly contentious view andsome say "the real truth" on Thursday, November 21, 2000. On thatday, Major Hamza al-Mustapha, the powerful chief of security andhenchman for late dictator Gen. Sani Abacha, told the Nigerian humanrights panel that multimillionaire politician Moshood Abiola, thepresumed winner of Nigeria's June 12, 1993 presidential polls wasmurdered in July 1998 by unnamed "powers that be."

Will the Commission and the government "induce and cause" him toname those "powers that be"?

The1993 election, judged by the international community to have been themost fair and credible one in Nigeria's history, at the time, washeld under the electoral commission leadership of the University ofNigeria (Nsukka) and University of California (Berkeley)-trainedprofessor of political science, Humphrey Nwobu Nwosu.

While many have commended the government of Nigeria's head ofState, retired General Olusegun Obasanjo, for establishing thecommission, there are some Nigerians who are demanding a similarprobe of the Obasanjoyears as a military dictator (1976-1979) - especially asregards the abuseof human rights, including those of Mrs. Kuti, the latemother of the irreverent Afro-beat genius, Fela Anikulapo Kuti andactivist Dr. Beko Ransome Kuti.

It will be recalled that an international team of pathologists,picked by the Abiola family, concluded that Abiola's death on July 7,1998, arose from a heart attack and natural causes.

U.S. Under Secretary of State Thomas Pickering and some members aU.S. delegation were meeting with Abiola and discussing terms for hisrelease just before he died.

Al-Mustapha is on trial for two murders and one attempted murder.At least 85 people were killed and more than 600 arrested followingAbiola's sudden death.

The al-Mustapha comment, without a doubt, has added yet anotherangle for those who argue that only a thorough and unqualified probewill reveal the facts of Nigeria's recent history. How far thecommission (and the government) plan to go will be evident in theforthcoming weeks and as chapters of revelations unfold at thesittings.

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INSIGHT Is Obasanjo ordained by God to rule Nigeria? Prof. Sola Adeyeye raises the issue and provides some thought-provoking answers.

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CONTINENTAL AGENDA Bush's position on Africa is "ill-advised." The position stated by Republican presidential aspirant and Governor of Texas, George Bush where he said that "Africa will not be an area of priority" in his presidency has been questioned by USAfricaonline.com Publisher Chido Nwangwu. He added that Bush's "pre-election position was neither validated by the economic exchanges nor geo-strategic interests of our two continents." These views were stated during an interview CNN's anchor Bernard Shaw and senior analyst Jeff Greenfield had with Mr. Nwangwu on Saturday November 18, 2000 during a special edition of 'Inside Politics 2000.' Nwangwu, adviser to the Mayor of Houston (the 4th largest city in the U.S., and immigrant home to thousands of Africans) argued further that "the issues of the heritage interests of 35 million African-Americans in Africa, the volume and value of oil business between between the U.S and Nigeria and the horrendous AIDS crisis in Africa do not lend any basis for Governor Bush's ill-advised position which removes Africa from fair consideration" were he to be elected president. By Alverna Johnson "The American people have now spoken, but it's going to take a little while to determine exactly what they said." U.S. President Bill Clinton.

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