• Home
  • Anti-Corruption
  • Fact-Check
  • Economy
  • National
    • Government
  • Security
  • Features
  • State
  • Event
    • PR Nigeria Award
  • E-Paper
Search
  • Home
  • About
  • Adverts
  • Contact
Sign in
Welcome! Log into your account
Forgot your password? Get help
Password recovery
Recover your password
A password will be e-mailed to you.
PRNIGERIA PRNigeria News
PRNIGERIA PRNIGERIA
  • Home
  • Anti-Corruption
    • Chinese nationals jailed in Lagos

      Court Jails Nine Chinese Nationals for Cybercrime in Lagos

      ASUU

      Tackle Corruption, Institutional Decay – ASUU Charges FG

      EFCC Arraigns Bauchi Accountant General Over N8bn Fraud as Court Sentences…

      PRNigeria logo fearured image

      EFCC Arraigns Ex-Convict, Other for Naira Abuse in Lagos

      EFCC Arrests 37 Suspected Internet Fraudsters in Ilorin

  • Fact-Check
  • Economy
    • Comptroller General Nigerian Customs Bashir Adewale

      Nigeria Customs, ICPC and the Audit of Conscience

      Customs Diplomacy: Nigeria, Saudi Arabia Ink Mutual Assistance Deal

      Comptroller General Nigerian Customs Bashir Adewale

      Nigeria, Belarus Forge Alliance to Combat Smuggling, Facilitate Trade

      President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and CG Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi

      Tinubu Hails Customs Boss Wale Adeniyi on Historic Election as WCO…

      WTO Lauds Nigeria Customs for Embracing Global Trade Standards

  • National
    • Multichoice logo

      NDPC Fines MultiChoice ₦766m for Data Protection Breach in Nigeria

      Abdullahi Aliyu Maiwada

      Customs Debunks Fake CBT Recruitment Shortlist Circulating Online

      NDLEA Logo

      NDLEA Intercepts UK, Saudi-Bond Cocaine Hidden in Lipsticks in Lagos, Arrests…

      Troops of the Nigerian Army giving a salute

      162nd Anniversary: Tinubu Salutes Nigerian Army, Hails Troops as Guardians of…

      MUSWEN Muslim Ummah of South West

      MUSWEN Renews Call for Shariah Courts to Regulate Affairs of Muslims

    • Government
      • MUSWEN Muslim Ummah of South West

        MUSWEN Renews Call for Shariah Courts to Regulate Affairs of Muslims

        Corporate Affairs Commission

        CAC Unveils AI-Powered Registration Portal to Revolutionize Business Registration in Nigeria

        Employment: ICPC Secures Conviction of FAAN Staff

        Staff of PRNigeria with federal lawmakers

        Federal Lawmakers Endorse PRNigeria Fellowship, Pledge Support for Youth Empowerment

        G7 Countries

        Iran Must Never Possess Nuclear Weapons – G7 Declare

  • Security
    • Abdullahi Aliyu Maiwada

      Customs Debunks Fake CBT Recruitment Shortlist Circulating Online

      NDLEA Logo

      NDLEA Intercepts UK, Saudi-Bond Cocaine Hidden in Lipsticks in Lagos, Arrests…

      Retired AIG Liman Shettima

      IGP Egbetokun Mourns Retired AIG Liman Shettima

      NAF

      NAF Hosts Nationwide Parley to Honour Veterans’ Courage, Sacrifice

      NIPSS Directing Staff behind the Queries Barrister Nima Salman Mann and Rear Admiral A.A. Mustapha

      Cybercrime Allegation: PRNigeria Petitions Police Against NIPSS Officials

  • Features
    • From SDP to ADA to ADC: Can the New Opposition Coalition…

      Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR

      Adeniyi: Lifting Nigeria to the Pinnacle of Global Customs Authority

      Nigeria’s Growth Numbers Tell Only Half the Story By Umar Farouk…

      NYSC Corps Members in Camp

      The Burden Too Many Nigerian Youths Bear Alone

      Combating Deepfake Videos: A Fight for Nigeria’s Soul By Mukhtar Ya’u…

  • State
    • NDLEA Logo

      NDLEA Intercepts UK, Saudi-Bond Cocaine Hidden in Lipsticks in Lagos, Arrests…

      MUSWEN Muslim Ummah of South West

      MUSWEN Renews Call for Shariah Courts to Regulate Affairs of Muslims

      Police Officer

      Police Foil Bandit Attacks in Katsina, Rescue Victims as Traditional Leader…

      Customs Hands Over N172m Worth of Cannabis to NDLEA in Ogun,…

      Combating Deepfake Videos: A Fight for Nigeria’s Soul By Mukhtar Ya’u…

  • Event
    • Troops of the Nigerian Army giving a salute

      162nd Anniversary: Tinubu Salutes Nigerian Army, Hails Troops as Guardians of…

      President & Chairman of Governing Council, Dr. Ike Neliaku

      NIPR Lauds Nigerian PR Firms for Outstanding Performances at 2025 SABRE…

      SCN NGO signs partnership with PRNIGERIA

      SCN NGO Seals Partnership with PRNigeria to Amplify its Humanitarian Projects

      NELFUND

      NELFUND Warns Students Against Fake Loan Application Portal

      EFCC Witness: Yahaya Bello Had No Property Dealings With EFAB

    • PR Nigeria Award
  • E-Paper
Home National Why we overthrew Buhari’s regime in 1985 – IBB
  • National

Why we overthrew Buhari’s regime in 1985 – IBB

By
Prnigeria
-
February 23, 2025

Why we overthrew Buhari’s regime in 1985 – IBB

The former military head of state, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB), says the Muhammadu Buhari regime was overthrown because he was dissatisfied with the latter’s policies and leadership styles.

Babangida was chief of staff to Buhari who ousted Shehu Shagari’s civilian government in the December 31, 1983 coup.

In his autobiography, ‘A Journey In Service’, launched in Abuja on Thursday, IBB said the Buhari regime promulgated “draconian” decrees which led to the abuse of fundamental rights and freedoms of the citizens.

He said he believed the policies of Buhari and his deputy, Tunde Idiagbon, “were detrimental to the nation’s progress” and his dissatisfaction “eventually led to its ouster in 1985”.

“After the military coup that replaced the civilian government of Shehu Shagari with a military regime led by Major General Muhammadu Buhari, Ibrahim Babangida assumed the role of Chief of Army Staff. However, he became increasingly dissatisfied with the Buhari government’s policies and leadership style, which he believed were detrimental to the nation’s progress. This dissatisfaction eventually led to its ouster in 1985, and he took office as the military President,” the book reads.

Recalling how he journeyed from Minna to Lagos on August 27, 1985, to assume office, Babangida said tension had already began to build up since the start of the year and a change in leadership had become necessary.

The former Nigerian leader further said that the coup which brought Buhari into office, which he described as a “rescue mission”, had derailed with the military at the risk of splitting.

“On that day, it became my lot to step into the saddle of national leadership on behalf of the Nigerian armed forces. The change in leadership had become necessary as a response to the worsening mood of the nation and growing concern about our future as a people. All through the previous day, as we flew from Minna and drove through Lagos towards Bonny Camp, I was deeply reflecting on how we as a nation got to this point and how and why I found myself at this juncture of fate,” IBB said in his book.

Read Also:

  • NDPC Fines MultiChoice ₦766m for Data Protection Breach in Nigeria
  • Customs Debunks Fake CBT Recruitment Shortlist Circulating Online
  • NDLEA Intercepts UK, Saudi-Bond Cocaine Hidden in Lipsticks in Lagos, Arrests Other Suspects

“By the beginning of 1985, the citizenry had become apprehensive about the future of our country. The atmosphere was precarious and fraught with ominous signs of clear and present danger. It was clear to the more discerning leadership of the armed forces that our initial rescue mission of 1983 had largely miscarried. We now stood the risk of having the armed forces split down the line because our rescue mission had largely derailed. If the armed forces imploded, the nation would go with it, and the end was just too frightening to contemplate.

“Divisions of opinion within the armed forces had come to replace the unanimity of purpose that informed the December 1983 change of government. In state affairs, the armed forces, as the only remaining institution of national cohesion, were becoming torn into factions; something needed to be done lest we lose the nation itself. My greatest fear was that division of opinion and views within the armed forces could lead to factionalisation in the military. If allowed to continue and gain root, grave dangers lay ahead.”

He claimed that Buhari and Idiagbon “posited a ‘holier than thou’ attitude”, separating themselves from what was meant to be a collective leadership.

He added that the duo caused the nation to become antagonistic towards the military.

“Fundamental rights and freedoms were being routinely infringed upon and abused. As a military administration, we were now presiding over a society that was primarily frightened of us,” he said.

“We were supposed to improve their lives and imbue the people with hope for a better future. Instead, we ruled the nation with a series of draconian decrees. An administration intended to reflect the collective will of the armed forces as a national institution came to be seen as the private personal autocracy of a stubborn few.

“Draconian decrees led to the abuse and severe limitation of basic freedoms as people were clamped into indefinite detention, most times for minor infractions. Punishment for crimes against the state had led to the pursuit of mechanical legalistic justice against the dictates of natural justice. As the Chief of Army Staff, I was under undue pressure from the rank and file to seek ways of reconnecting the government to society lest we lose the nation itself.

“This tense atmosphere culminated in the unanimous decision of a broad spectrum of senior and middle-level officers to change the nation’s leadership. The processes associated with this change were completed without bloodshed by midnight on August 26, 1985.”

In his 1985 maiden address to the nation reproduced in the book, Babangida said Buhari was “too rigid and uncompromising in his attitudes to issues of national significance”.

He added that Idiagbon “was similarly inclined in that respect” and that “a combination of these characteristics in the two most important persons holding the nation’s vital offices became impossible to contend with”.

Babangida said an action had to be taken so as to rebuild the hopes of Nigerians, hence the ousting of the Buhari military regime.

VISIT OUR OTHER WEBSITES
PRNigeria.com EconomicConfidential.com PRNigeria.com/Hausa/
EmergencyDigest.com PoliticsDigest.ng TechDigest.ng
HealthDigest.ng SpokesPersonsdigest.com TeensDigest.ng
ArewaAgenda.com Hausa.ArewaAgenda.com YAShuaib.com
  • TAGS
  • buhari
  • Coup
  • General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida
  • Nigeria
Previous articleDSS arrests Lagos assembly workers for assaulting personnel
Next articleNDLEA Intercepts UK-Bound Drug Shipments, Nab Thai Woman, 4 Others in Nationwide Crackdown
Prnigeria
Prnigeria

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

Multichoice logo

NDPC Fines MultiChoice ₦766m for Data Protection Breach in Nigeria

Abdullahi Aliyu Maiwada

Customs Debunks Fake CBT Recruitment Shortlist Circulating Online

NDLEA Logo

NDLEA Intercepts UK, Saudi-Bond Cocaine Hidden in Lipsticks in Lagos, Arrests Other Suspects

NIPSS Directing Staff behind the Queries Barrister Nima Salman Mann and Rear Admiral A.A. Mustapha

Cybercrime Allegation: PRNigeria Petitions Police Against NIPSS Officials

‎FACT-CHECK: Was a Man Trapped in Ceiling after Trying to Hack FCMB Bank?

FACT-CHECK: Did a Man Catch His Wife and Driver “Knacking” in a Hotel Room?

Troops of the Nigerian Army giving a salute

162nd Anniversary: Tinubu Salutes Nigerian Army, Hails Troops as Guardians of National Unity

MUSWEN Muslim Ummah of South West

MUSWEN Renews Call for Shariah Courts to Regulate Affairs of Muslims

Ribadu Proposes Reintegration of Military Veterans to Bolster National Security

DICON signs MoU with Saudi firm

DICON, Saudi firm sign MoU to produce security drones, satellites in Nigeria

Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Faruk Yahaya

Ex-COAS Urges Reforms in Recruitment, Training of Army, Harps on Prioritisation of Troops’ Welfare

Prioritise Troops’ Welfare, Mission Over Personal Gain – COAS Charges Army Commanders

Recent Posts

  • NDPC Fines MultiChoice ₦766m for Data Protection Breach in Nigeria
  • Customs Debunks Fake CBT Recruitment Shortlist Circulating Online
  • NDLEA Intercepts UK, Saudi-Bond Cocaine Hidden in Lipsticks in Lagos, Arrests Other Suspects
  • From SDP to ADA to ADC: Can the New Opposition Coalition Unseat Tinubu in 2027?
  • IGP Egbetokun Mourns Retired AIG Liman Shettima
  • Home
  • About
  • Adverts
  • Contact
© 2020 PRNigeria. All Rights Reserved.
Latest News
NDPC Fines MultiChoice ₦766m for Data Protection Breach in NigeriaCustoms Debunks Fake CBT Recruitment Shortlist Circulating OnlineNDLEA Intercepts UK, Saudi-Bond Cocaine Hidden in Lipsticks in Lagos, Arrests Other SuspectsFrom SDP to ADA to ADC: Can the New Opposition Coalition Unseat Tinubu in 2027?IGP Egbetokun Mourns Retired AIG Liman ShettimaNAF Hosts Nationwide Parley to Honour Veterans’ Courage, SacrificeCybercrime Allegation: PRNigeria Petitions Police Against NIPSS Officials‎FACT-CHECK: Was a Man Trapped in Ceiling after Trying to Hack FCMB Bank?FACT-CHECK: Did a Man Catch His Wife and Driver “Knacking” in a Hotel Room?162nd Anniversary: Tinubu Salutes Nigerian Army, Hails Troops as Guardians of National UnityAdeniyi: Lifting Nigeria to the Pinnacle of Global Customs AuthorityMUSWEN Renews Call for Shariah Courts to Regulate Affairs of MuslimsPolice Foil Bandit Attacks in Katsina, Rescue Victims as Traditional Leader AbductedRibadu Proposes Reintegration of Military Veterans to Bolster National SecurityDICON, Saudi firm sign MoU to produce security drones, satellites in Nigeria
X whatsapp