Former Military President, General Ibrahim Babangida (IBB), has distanced himself from statements purportedly endorsing military rule over democratic governance.
In a statement released from his media office, signed by Mahmud Abdullahi, General Babangida reiterated his unwavering commitment to democracy and urged Nigerians to support and safeguard democratic processes.
The statement addressed a misleading post on a parody account on X, formerly known as Twitter, under the handle @General_Ibbro. The account, which falsely attributes statements to General Babangida, recently posted that he endorsed military rule as preferable to democracy.
“Our attention has been drawn to a post on a parody account on X, formerly known as Twitter, which carries the handle, @General_Ibbro, in which former President Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, GCFR, was supposed to have endorsed the virtues of military rule over democratic governance,” the statement began.
The post was described as a “dubious account” using Babangida’s picture, name, and the coat of arms of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to lend credibility to its false claims. The statement clarified that the former President does not own or endorse any content from this account.
It recalled a similar incident during the previous presidential elections when the same account falsely claimed that General Babangida had endorsed a specific presidential candidate, causing confusion and embarrassment.
“We have just learnt that it has posted a similarly fake statement where the former President was supposed to have said that Nigeria had its best years under military rule, and that democracy made things worse,” the statement continued.
General Babangida’s media office emphasized that he believes in the resilience and permanence of democracy in Nigeria. “As a nation, we are currently facing a number of challenges but the former president has always expressed the view that we will eventually overcome these challenges and come out a stronger, more progressive nation. The solution to our problems, as he had said previously, is ‘more’ democracy, not less,” the statement asserted.
The former President expressed pride in the Nigerian military’s support for democratic governance since 1999, marking the longest period of civilian administration in the country’s history.
The statement concluded with a caution to the public and media practitioners to verify information from credible sources before sharing, especially when attributed to prominent figures like General Babangida. “We are again obliged to advise the general public to ignore any post from this account that purportedly claims to represent my opinion,” General Babangida declared.
