Chairman Senate Committee on South East Development Commission (SEDC), Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, APC, Abia North, has revealed how former President Olusegun Obasanjo betrayed his agreement to serve one term and to subsequently hand over to the North.
Kalu has, however, revealed an account of an alleged political understanding involving Obasanjo and former military president Ibrahim Babangida ahead of the 2003 presidential election.
The former Abia State governor, who spoke on why his once cordial relationship with Obasanjo eventually collapsed, disclosed that their disagreement was rooted partly in what he described as an agreement that Obasanjo would serve only one four-year term before power returned to the North.
According to him, the understanding was reached during a meeting involving himself, Obasanjo and Babangida at Obasanjo’s residence in Ota, Ogun State, stressing that the arrangement was intended to accommodate the political circumstances surrounding the emergence of Obasanjo in 1999, following the annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential election.
The former Senate Whip spoke on Monday night during an exclusive appearance on Arise PrimeTime, the flagship evening current affairs programme of Arise News Television, anchored by Charles Aniagolu.
Kalu maintained that the agreement was for Obasanjo to complete one term and hand over to another political leader from the North, allowing the country’s power rotation arrangement to continue.
When asked specifically to speak about reports that Babangida was expected to succeed Obasanjo in 2003, with Kalu potentially becoming his running mate, the senator said he could not confirm the vice-presidential arrangement but stood by the agreement concerning Obasanjo’s tenure.
“Well, I cannot be certain about the vice presidency, but I can tell you, yes, this was our discussion in Ota. That he would leave, he would leave for four years and give back to the North,” he disclosed.
Providing further details, Kalu identified an individual he described as Obasanjo’s aide from Benue State, named Adobeye in the interview, as being present during the discussion.
He said, “What we discussed and agreed there were people there, there were people there, like His Boy, Obasanjo’s Boy, Adobeye from Benue State; he was sitting down there where we sat, me, Ibrahim Babangida and President Obasanjo. Where we agreed, we agreed.”
Kalu said the disagreement over the alleged arrangement was among the issues that eventually damaged his relationship with the former president, just as he accused Obasanjo of using state institutions, particularly the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to pursue political opponents and remove elected governors through what he considered unconstitutional means.
The senator maintained that his opposition to Obasanjo was not driven by personal ambition but by his disagreement with what he considered a departure from their political understanding and constitutional principles.
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