Adds Babangida has lost in affairs of honor
The family of the late General Mamman Jiya Vatsa, who was executed on an allegation of coup against General Babangida in 1986, has reacted to the submission by Babangida in his autobiography that the killing of Vatsa was justified because there was enough evidence implicating him in the coup.
The spokesperson of the family and former commissioner for information culture and tourism in Niger state, Hon. Jonathan Vatsa, while reacting to Babangida’s claims in his book on “the Vatsa coup”, which have continued to generate negative reactions across the country, at a press briefing in Minna on Tuesday – today, February 25 -, described General Babangida as a man “that has lost in the affairs of honor”, over the many lies contained in his belated autobiography.
The former commissioner who is a cousin to the late General Vatsa said he decided not to react until after reading the book, which he described as “full of deceits and distorted facts”, pointed out that Babangida’s autobiography cannot serve as a reference material to young and up-coming generations but for criminals, stressing that “a collection of distorted facts called book written by a man without identity cannot serve as a reference book for younger generation but a good reference book for criminally-minded people.”
The former publicity secretary of All the Progressives Congress (APC), who almost shed tears while addressing the media in Minna, said that ordinarily, the family wouldn’t have joined issues with a man who allegedly changed his identity just to belong to a certain ethnic group in the country, but since Babangida has refused to allow the late General Vatsa rest in peace after killing him, “we will let him know that even in death, General Vatsa is a more honorable man because he has an identity, he came from a home.”
According to Hon. Vatsa, Babangida admitted in his book that he changed the name Badamosi to Babangida so that people will know he is from the north.
Wondering where IBB got the name Badamosi in the first place, since northerners don’t bear the name Badamosi, Hon. Vatsa asserted that since the name is synonymous with the Southwest, it could only mean one thing, namely, that IBB is a Yoruba.
“A man who denied his tribe and identity is not fit to live,” Vatsa declared, adding that “the many lies in Babangida’s book are a clear evidence that he is not the genius the Nigerian media created for him, but “a Lilly-livered” General for annulling the June 12 and failing to retire the late General Abacha for fear of being killed by Abacha’s loyalists in the Army, as claimed in his book.
“How can he lie that it was Abacha who annulled June 12 if he was in control as a Head of State. He equally admitted that the Military was heavily politicized and because of that, he couldn’t retire Abacha for fear of being killed by Abacha loyalists in the Army”.
Vatsa said that those who advised Babangida to write “the bunch of lies and blackmails called autobiography” have further dented his already battered image, stressing that “it would have been better for him to keep quiet than dishing out chunk of lies and deceit far from the truth about himself as a human being.”
“Unfortunately the man he accused of annulling the June 12 and all the actors in the June 12 controversy are no more today to tell their own story and that is why no serious-minded individual should take the book seriously.
“This is the man that had earlier said he would not write any book because, according to him, there are people he cannot resist abusing and that he wouldn’t want to hurt their children and ground children but what he has done now (only speaks to) lack of emotional stability.
“Even in death, Babangida has refused to allow the late General Vatsa and his family to have peace; he is still troubling the dead man and his entire family. Well, people have seen the end of our brother, but Babangida doesn’t know how he will end.
“Our joy is that the reactions of Nigerians after the so-called book presentation shows that the killing of the late General Vatsa was done out of envy, malice and hatred. It was a case of a man with a root and identity versus someone who has no root and a second name,” Hon. Vatsa stated.
The APC Chieftain in Niger State, while expressing regrets over the cream of personalities that gathered for the book lunch, pointed out that the country called Nigeria is a huge joke, a country where people who called themselves leaders act before they think, adding that no reasonable Nigerian who is benefiting from the current democratic system which Abiola’s struggle and his eventual death brought to Nigeria, should have donated towards this revelation of evil done to Nigeria and Nigerians called autobiography.
“This has further confirmed why some Nigerians in their opinions believe that this country is worth not dying for if not, how can we as a people gather to celebrate evil done to a nation by an individual,” he queried.
Vatsa stated further that the late General vatsa told the then Military tribunal that tried him that the day the Nigerian Army started insulting itself others would join, so by this book, Babangida has insulted himself and others will join,” he surmised.
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