Only God knows how painful Maryam Babangida's death has been to her husband of 40 years, Ibrahim. From all indications, it must have been very painful. They had never been separated for four decades, living together through the good, tough and bad times. When Babangida annulled a free and fair election in 1993 and was given the boot, he found comfort in his wife. She was never known to have failed to render him unconditional love and support. Even when Babangida's character as a ruthless dictator was in play, Maryam never spoke badly about anything her husband did. Contrarily, she used her husband's position to her greatest benefit.
How bad it must have been for Ibrahim to have spent the last few months like an ordinary human being attending to a sick wife in the United States? One of Nigeria's richest and most crowding-drawing leaders must have been humbled, going back and forth in an American hospital to care for a sick wife. Babangida was not ordinary. He had lots of money. He could have bought the hospital where his wife died and all the medical staff, if he wished, and shipped them to Minna. What went wrong? This did not happen, did it?Nigerian leaders know when they leave the shores of Africa, they lose the air of importance accorded at home. Quite often, they drive their own cars and are treated with courtesy but with none of the 'rankadede' accompaniments in Nigeria. When they eat their snacks, they have to throw the wrap in the bin like everyone else. When they go to the post office, they have to wait in line as everyone else. When they get to the airport, they must obey the rules. It must have been very humbling for Ibrahim Babangida to have gone through the 'disrespect' of the American life while at the same time tending to a seriously ill wife.
Ibrahim would have wished he didn't have to bring Maryam to the United States to be cured at some point during the treatment. I am qualified to paint a picture of Babangida's last few months in the United States. Not only do I live here, but my mother-in-law was treated at a New Jersey teaching hospital around the same time Maryam was hospitalized in California for an identical medical condition. They are about the same age and my mother-in-law gave birth to my wife the same year Maryam got married. You could say they had a lot in common, except, perhaps, better life for richer women! My wife's mom is surviving. My wife and I had no problems whatsoever with meeting the conditions of the treatment, but I do know for a fact, it must have been difficult for a man of IBB's caliber to sit like a mere mortal in a US hospital.
I can imagine how the courteous nurses and doctors at the hospital talked to Babangida as if he was just another human being. "Can you please stand outside for a few minutes, Sir?" "Can you move your legs there for a minute, Sir?” “Can you please come back at 7pm, Sir?" "What did you say you name was again, Sir – can you spell it?" "Is it true that you were an important government official in the Caribbean, Sir?" I can almost see how the medical center's security men made him wait before entry and the cleaners cast him a bad look for littering the floor. How Ibrahim Babangida must have been brought back to earth in the last few months of his wife's presence on earth.
First, the generosity of the American government in allowing Babangida - a man who had been refused entry for so long - to join his wife on compassionate grounds must be hailed. They could have said no to his visa application, even when America stood to benefit from the millions of dollars that would be spent on treatment and by IBB's crowd of sympathizers who visited and shopped in the process. Thank you, America.
The point here is that Mrs. Babangida's death reveals how money has its limits and what price we pay for not doing the right thing at the right time.
Ovarian cancer is not such a medical condition that Nigerian hospitals should not have been able to treat after almost 50 years of our independence. The human resources to provide the best medical services exist in Nigeria, but the material resources are lacking. We lack the resources because Nigerian leaders have refused to provide them, thinking selfishly that if they stole enough, they would travel abroad to get anything they required. Instead of developing the nation that has been good to them, they steal catastrophic amounts of the public funds and afford themselves exclusive and exotic expenses such as the overseas medical treatment that did not save Mrs. Babangida's life. Fortunately (yes, fortunately), Ibrahim is perhaps the best example of bad leadership that got Nigeria in such a state where even mid-level civil servants seek medical treatment abroad.
When my dad died four years ago in Nigeria, no explanation was given of what he died of. He had been treated at local clinics and a university teaching hospital. They never told us what medical condition he lost his life to. They simply didn't know. And we didn't bother to press them, knowing the hospitals lacked the diagnostic capacity to provide an intelligent answer. You only have to visit Nigerian hospitals to know how bad the situation is. A friend, who migrated to the United States two years ago, told an unbelievable story of his eye surgery. He was left in pains for several days because there were no drugs, even though he was receiving treatment in a military hospital as a member of the Navy.
Babangida and his cohorts looted Nigeria. They turned hospitals to consulting clinics and universities to glorified high schools. They took their own children from the system and sent them to the best schools abroad. They took from many and gave to a few. Nigeria became what Tell Magazine described as 'Rich Men, Poor Nation." While less endowed nations were taking great strides, Nigeria became a nation whose progress can only be seen through Lekki, Victoria Island and Abuja, while focus is lost on the abject poverty in our villages, towns and cities.
While sending Maryam abroad has not saved her life, sending the children of the rich to school abroad has also resulted in an unintended consequence of international terrorism. Maryam and Farouk Mutallab have provided a weekend of deep reflection for Nigeria's rich.
Ibrahim and Maryam Babangida have no endowment at any Nigerian university. They did not contribute any money to any teaching hospital to cause any improvement or change. They did not build any hospital or local health center, neither did they put any money down to fight any major disease. Instead, they spent their money and time on frivolities.
The Babangida family did not use Maryam’s medical condition to attract attention to this disease that affects millions, as most sensible public figures do. Instead they lied to the end - telling Nigeria that all was well. No public statement was issued, even when the rumor mill was rife. The Maradona lied and hid in America as a common citizen.
The answer to our greatness is not in seeking solutions with stolen money outside of our shores, but in serving the people honestly and diligently.
Looking at it this way, Babangida could have contributed to the death of his wife: if Babangida had done something about the hospitals in Nigeria, the wife would probably have been tended to like a queen in Nigeria and her condition would have been correctly diagnosed and treated before it became terminal.
Againstbabangida.com wishes that Babangida will get over his loss through sober reflection, regret and a readiness for restitution. We will not join the gang of hypocrites and fail to tell him the truth. And this is the truth: We sympathize with Ibrahim Babangida on the death of his wife, but our greatest sympathy goes to Nigerian women who suffer the same condition as Maryam but would never know what it is because they will not be correctly diagnosed by the medical system that Babangida bequeathed through corruption.
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While your interest in exposing the evil of corruption and the arrogance of the so called "elite" in Nigeria might be noteworthy or even commendable. Your grievances about about the state of affairs in Nigeria may be credible.
The viral nature of your attack on Babangida and your claim of being qualified to deliver that attack with venom because your mother-in-law just went thru a treatment in a New Jersey hospital is despicable.
This man, no matter what your feelings for him, his family and even the dearly departed, just lost his wife of 40 years. Your using that solemn event to attack him and turn it around to what could have, should have happened in Nigeria is inhuman at best.
I beleieve that Babangida, like all of the rulers of Nigeria, made life more difficult for the Nigerian people. I believe that Babangida's regime was especially more troublesome than the rest, with the exception of the Abacha regime. Nonetheless, using his wife's death to make your point, however important that point may be, is undignified and made you no better than him.
Your action here is appalling, vindictive and un-Christ-like. I do not know you, but I am embarrased for you. You claimed to live in New Jersey, even mobsters in New Jersey are not assailed like this when their loved ones passed.
We all need to learn to improve our character and consequentially, the character of our beloved Nigeria by emulating what is good in every society we might find ourselves in. You need work here buddy.
Happy New Year to you and yours. And remember, constructive criticism is the name of the game. Be loved.
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Henry, the reason we are in this situation today is because people like you appease those who are supposed to be shot by firing squad. I am sure you would say the same things for Adolf Hitler's wife if you could.
It takes courage to call a spade a spade.
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-The memory of the righteous will be a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot.
- When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices; when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy.
- but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the unfaithful will be torn from it.
-The fear of the LORD adds length to life, but the years of the wicked are cut short.
-When the wicked rise to power, people go into hiding; but when the wicked perish, the righteous thrive.
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Even the article did not accuse Babangida's wife of compicity in the looting of Nigeria, that is your added dimension. However, my criticism of the author did not rest on if Babangida and his cronies stole from Nigeria, that is a proven fact, what I am condemning is the viral personal nature of the attack and the lack of dignity in the lack of respect for the dead. I don't know what part of Nigeria you are from, but from my part, there is respect for the dead and dignity for the mourners during the period of mourning.
Your quick escallation to Hitler is the same type of hyperventilating I noticed and protested in the original article. It may not be in the cards to get some of our people, you included, to be objective and mature in words and deeds, but it is never too late to point out the error of our ways.
I have no warm feelings towards Babangida and his ilks, by the same token, I have no warm feelings for anyone who have the megaphone and use it to incite hatred.
Your emotion is clearly getting the best of you here and for all the screaming that people like you have done, we are still worse off than we were 50 years ago. Can we try a more humane approach? Maybe the next generation will learn from our constructive engagements and relate better and do better for our country.
Nothing personal, not to you, not to Chris.
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What about what you quoted from the old testament here should I be paying attention to?
Which part of it made you or me or Chris the executor of God's will? And how did you determine that one person is righteous and another wicked?
If you revel in other people's mystery, are you righteous or wicked? I personally think revelling in other people's mystery is wicked and can easily classify that as evil.
Be careful pointing those fingers because four others point back at you.
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Steal - thou shall not steal
-Lie
-Betray
-Murder
-Sell harmful substances
-Fail to repent or make restitution.
All of these, we can attribute to Mr. & Mrs. Babangida. She never said on my and my husband's behalf, I apologize for our wrongs. They kept enjoying stolen wealth and justifying their crimes. Plese go share your sympathy with Dele Giwa's mum, Vatsa's wife or the families of those killed in the SAP and June 12 riots. Your spiritual tears are wasted at the wrong funeral. Please. Or go to Minna to join the bandwagon of stupid leaders in Nigeria.
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Even though no exchange of idea or knowledge is going on here, I am actually enjoying this. It may not have occured to you yet that I am not interested in discussing religion. I know the religion thing was latched on because I told Chris, the author, that it is not Christ-Like to be vindictive. The reason for saying that is my assumption that Chris is either a short form for Christopher or Christian.
You may be a learned person in the ins and outs of the bible, being learned does not translate to practising what you preach.
The first group of people called Christians were not priests or people immersed in the old testament. They are called Christians because their behaviors are just Christ like. Let's take a look at how Christ lived, he preached against the oppression of the have nots. He asked sinners to repent, he explained the fallacy of the ways of evil doers, he fed the hungry, healed the sick. When people ask him to condemn others for their sins, he always use a variety of phrases to chastise those who asked him to condemn others, a rather famous one is "let who is without sin cast the first stone" .
Compare that with the venom being glorified here and ask yourself, what will Christ say about Babangida and his family if he were in our mist today? He most likely will not choose this route of hatred, because it serves no useful purpose other than polerize minds.
My whole point here is, we have tried loud noise, we have tried violence, we have tried hatred. None of it has worked for this Nigerian experiment. How about we try a different approach? How about we use reason and common sense? How about we use the tactics of the Civil Rights movement to re-build the character of our country?
Think about this, we have always produced very bad leaders in Nigeria. Why is this? There is something fundermentally wrong with our character as a group. It is not a problem in Nigeria only, but Nigeria is almost the epidemy of this character flaw. Violence and hatred and whipping up people's emotions to a frenzy will not help us.
What might help is to challenge the mindset of each individual and pepper that with optimism. Viral condemnation and total disrespect for human dignity especially at a sensitive time only rally the masses to the side of the percieved victim.
We cannot on one hand say we condemn evil and then use evil tactics to prove our point. As much as I despice what Babangida nad his co-hurts have done to Nigeria, I do not wish any evil on him. I wish that one day, he will look back, find the errors of his ways and decide that he is better off casting his lot with the Nigerian masses.
He is definitely not going to get there on his own and the people spending time and money on pressuring him have not been able to convince him to act and believe different. What might convince him and many more like him in Nigeria today is if the underlining character of the nation is to change. Nobody has ever effect that kind of change by hurling insults and viral comments.
The progressives in Nigeria need a change of direction and tactics. The most performing current public servant we have in the country today is the governor of Lagos, He is effecting changes not by being loud and obnoxious, but by welcoming all investors and instituting changes that goes to the character of the citizenry. Small steps, but important steps.
Let us use our heads, not our hearts because the heart is highly susceptible to emotions and uncontrolled emotions is a recipe for failure if not outright dissaster.
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The problem with our nation is that we are too peaceful - the rogue leaders know this and use it to the max. We don't challenge them enough. We are too afraid to speak our minds. This is why you see everyone bowing down at IBB's house. If IBB were in America today, where do you think he would be? Contesting the presidency? He will not survive the scan. Living in a house he could not have bought with his salary if he had worked for a thousand years? His son has never worked yet he owns billions onaira in property. We know all these and are quiet. And that makes you happy? Get off your couch, men!
There is no bitterness here. It's just a matter of saying the truth at any time. You can say it anyway you like, but the truth stays the same anyway.
No one can claim to be like Jesus, really. We are daily renewed in our minds and are transformed, but He is the only one without sin. Our cleaness is like filthy rags (woman's menstral material) to God. So, no one is trying to be holy here.
However, there are many roads to the same spot. If you feel comfortable with your methods, run with it. Let other people do their thing without harrassing them.
When Ronald Reagan died, there was a spectrum of opinions about his life. We should take joy to review lives of important people in our society when they die. We learn from such, we progress from such. Contrary to what you believe, this is in my opinion the road to national progress. If any part of our culture is bad, the hell with it - it should die.
Chris Odediran here has actually not written anything to attract your annoyance. He has written to show the vanity of life and point out what IBB's objectives should have been. He did not say serves them right. He said they should have made other choices. Looks like you were out to complain and that is plain wrong.
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I have only just learnt of Maryam's death myself and when I heard she died here in the US, the first thought that came to my mind was that, as far as I could remember, the US had declared him a "persona non grata" on US soil. I then wondered whether the status had been rescinded. But after reading this article, i figured he must have been allowed here purely on compassionate grounds. The second thought that came to my mind was what would I not give for the opportunity to watch him come and go here, visiting his wife and feeling the pains just like a mere mortal. This article vicariously served that purpose.
Lastly, the saying is rife in this country: "What goes around comes around." It is another way of stating the Law of Karma - a universal law that sees to it that when we sow cassava, the off shoot is guaranteed not to be plantain. But then God moves in mysterious ways, so that fruits of our actions are not always obvious as it is in this case. It is not really that the outcomes are not obvious as that they come back to us in all their ramifications for everyone concerned. The consequences are so choreographed that only an Intelligence as infinte as the Universal Mind could have woven the threads as painstakingly and as carefully with just one single event. Such is the wisdom of the Infinite Mind and the economy of Its ways.
He that hath ears; let him hear; and he that hath ears let him see. To the untrained eye, IBB and other despots and looters of the economy like him got away with it. Really? Then read this article again and read it very carefully. Or don't read it at all.
As my late dad (of blessed memory) used to say, "Though the mills of God grind slowly, they grind exceedingly fine." Let this be a lesson for us all.
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What they was neither a mistake nor an oversight. It was a preplanned, arranged and calculated theft. They were selfish and should be made to pay. They could have lived well on their salary and other allowies but they choose to plung the nation (their sustenance) to avoidable agonies.
The US will not preach or be christ-like to such corrupt individuals. They will be taken to court and when found guilty, every stolen money will be retrieved to the last penny.
I'm a christian, but I think one of our greatest problem in Nigeria is that we accept too many things as fate (will of God). Jesus was so many things but He was not a coward. An average Nigerian is cowardice in nature. They don't want any action that will disrupt their seemingly peaceful essistence. Nigerians are suffering and what we needed is real action! Without this, the so called rich and corrupt leaders will continue to live at the expence of the average Nigerians.
I symphatise with Babangida on the death of his wife. May the Lord have mercy on her soul. That said and done, Babangida with his refusal to publicly appologise, must pay for all the evil he has put this country (Nigeria) through. He must be made to pay back all the stolen funds. It was his administration that promoted corruption and discredit Nigeria in the midst of Nations.
All our past corrupt leaders must be be brought to book and be made to pay for their crimes. This is my stand.
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Kudos on your article. Contrary to what the nay sayers are nagging about, you struck while the proverbial iron was still hot. Some of us Nigerians are either naive and misled about the truth, or some are simply, on some scale, cohorts of the perpetrators of political and economic evils against Nigeria and its citizens. Every dissenting Nigerian on popular causes knows precisely in which domain he or she falls into. Any way, like other well-meaning Nigerians, I find myself agreeing with every word that you wrote on this issue.
And now to Babangida. I have suggested in the past that for this man of many evils to begin to redeem himself from History's Sledgehammer (God's case against him is a different matter), he
should make Nigeria --the nation known, called, and does business with the name, NIGERIA-- as the beneficiary of 95% of "his" Estate, in his Will. At least that way, History might give him a modicum of positive footnote. Indeed, no one EVER departs this planet with the material wealth gannered while on his/her earthly journey, as Ibrahim now knows from the death of his wife.
Another thing Babangida can do for himself --not necessarily for Nigeria-- is to truly embark on an anti-corruption drive in Nigeria. He should now emulate Saul, who was on his way to Damascus on a murderous trip in hot pursuit of the Disciples and Apostles of Jesus Christ. Inevitably, Saul became a changed man by the act of providence, and he bacame the chief spokesman for the christian cause he sought to destroy, and his name was changed to Paul. That is Babangida's task, and his name changing would involve him stepping forward to admit his many sins. This man
knows the ins and outs of corruption in Nigeria, and can easily assist in cracking most of the corruption cases in Nigeria
Until he follows this advice, Babangida's House is really built on quicksand, and will quickly do him in.
Again, Chris, this is a well-timed production.
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Ogbeni Odediran just read my mind. If there is any consolation to the suffering masses in Nigeria the inept rulers in Naija and looters also pay the price for not doing the right thing at the right time.
Kudos Ogebni Odediran and a belated condolence on the loss of your dad. I will also add that my mum died young of negligence too in 1982. The irony is that her daughter-in-law is medical doctor some 4.000 kilo metres away – pathetic.
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level-headed and incisive writers like you are needed to remind those more susceptible to the deceptions of sophistry as to the reality.
Long last your keyboard!
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I relish the thought and the reality that despite the ill-gotten wealth babangidas could not arrest or detain death. Death make us all mere mortal and even.
Babangida, his associates or any members of their families deserve no pity or consideration. They wont meet with the good eye of my Lord, insha Allah bijahi qun fayakun, unless they feel remorseful and amend their ways and failings..
Waasi lasan ko ran ole (Preaching alone is not sufficient to deter thieves)!
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Let's face it - we have all always suspected Ibrahim Babangida of being a drug dealer. The story of Gloria Okon, Dele Giwa's death, the burning of the Ministry of Defence and other stories are all allegedly tied to an official drug ring during IBB's regime. We researched the rumors, and this is what we found.
Nigeria's military dictatorship, led by General Ibrahim Babangida, annulled the Jun 12 presidential election and canceled plans to return the nation to civilian rule. 
Most Nigerian leaders have been corrupt, but Ibrahim Babangida added new, historic elements to corruption. One prime example is what he did with the defunct BCCI Bank. BCCI's activities in Nigeria were so profoundly, overwhelmingly corrupt as to suggest a very significant level of corruption in Nigerian officialdom generally. 
