By Richard Akinola
The Russian plane crash of yesterday that killed Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Wagner leader, speculated to have the imprimatur of Putin shouldn’t come as a surprise.
Dictators and political operatives use such sinister methods to eliminate opponents or perceived opponents. Accidents are sometimes arranged to eliminate opponents without any trace to the perpetrators.
Major-General Musa Yar’Adua was eliminated in prison through an injection during the Abacha junta.
There was also the case of Major Debo Bashorun.
At the early stages of the Babangida’s government, he was quite visible in the government. He was so close to the former President that he even wrote a book on him. But after a few years, things got awry between Major Debo Bashorun and General Ibrahim Babangida.
As military press secretary to the former President, his closeness to the General made the Chief spook of the government, Brigadier Haliru Akilu uncomfortable. He therefore put a wedge between the duo, as Bashorun was labeled a security risk. And who was Babangida to question his chief spook? An average dictator is a prisoner of his security Chief. Babangida was not an exception.
Akilu didn’t want to see Bashorun at the Dodan Barracks, the then seat of Government and inexplicably in November, 1988, he influenced his transfer to the 31 Airborne Brigade, Markurdi.
Major Bashorun resisted the move as, according to him, the transfer was to pave way for his elimination. He said he got information that an accident would be arranged to kill him, without any linkage to the government, hence his refusal to go on transfer.
When his protests did not yield any fruit, he scurried to the chambers of Alao Aka-Bashorun, then president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), who advised that he resigned, which he did on December 23, 1988.
But the resignation letter was rejected by the army authorities which insisted that he must report at Makurdi. He was declared AWOL. He then instituted an action against Brigadier Akilu, Brigadier Fred Chijuka and the Army Council, alleging harassment and threat to life.
Justice Olusola Thomas, then of the Lagos High Court restrained the Army from harassing the officer and from also ejecting him from his official quarters.
At the initial period of the case, the Ministry of Defence was being defended by a retired Army Major in private practice. At the next adjourned date, Mr. Moshood Adio, then of the Ministry of Justice, appeared for the Army. Mr. Aka-Bashorun objected to his appearance on the premise that one lawyer had already filed memorandum of appearance and had not withdrawn from the matter.
Justice Thomas overruled this objection and Aka-Bashorun headed for the Appeal Court which ruled in his favour.
Meanwhile, before the case went to the court of Appeal, Major Bashorun had alleged that his life was being threatened by soldiers who laid siege at his house. He therefore abandoned his house and went into hiding.
Before the next adjourned date, Major Bashorun got a hint that he might be abducted by armed soldiers at the court premises. He therefore came to court well prepared for a battle.
Dressed in a brown flowing Agbada, his eyes darted across the courtroom in quick succession. Beneath his billowing Agbada were three instruments of death-two Isreali Uzzis strapped to his body and another pistol holed somewhere in his pocket.
This day, his usual lively countenance was now contorted in an angry scowl, exhibiting a desperate mien. With three guns in his possession, Major Bashorun was ready for the battle of his life. Predictably, there were about twelve armed soldiers in the courtroom on this day.
Before the court started sitting, Major Bashorun confided in his lawyer, Aka-Bashorun what was in the offing. He told Aka-Bashorun: “They want to seize me. They want to take me to Makurdi by force and kill and I am not going. I’m ready to die here in the courtroom. Before they kill me, I will kill some of them. Some of them will die with me. That’s why l’m with these guns.”
He, therefore cautioned Aka-Bashorun to leave the courtroom immediately after the court session or to stay put in the court so that he wont be caught in the cross-fire outside the courtroom.
As soon as the case was adjourned, Aka-Bashorun told his junior lawyers to quickly pack their books and disappear from the vicinity.
On his way out, he met Brigadier Chijuka and challenged him why there were so many soldiers around. Chijuka assured him that there was no cause for alarm. But Aka-Bashorun was not satisfied with such an assurance. He doubled his steps and stood at the Igbosere Street adjourning the High Court to watch the battle at a safe distance. But that was not to be as nothing happened. Major Bashorun eventually managed to outwit them and disappeared from the court premises and escaped to the United States of America.
