Professor Ukandi G. Damachi, long term confidant of Nigeria’s Former President Ibrahim Babangida had allegedlly told the United States council that former president Yar’Adua was poisoned by Ex President Obasanjo’s kitchen staff, Wikileaks has reported.
In the Wikileaks cable, referenced, ID 08LAGOS153, Professor Damachi’s narrated that late President Yar’Adua was given poison in his food. “His food was poisoned”, he alleged. He stated further that Yar’ Adua inherited Obasanjo’s kitchen, and the kitchen staff likely used poison on Yar’ Adua. The professor further revealed that when President Yar’Adua realized this, he fired the Obasanjo kitchen staff.
His words, “There are lots of problems in Nigeria. The first problem is the President’s illness; his food was poisoned”. Asked whether he meant “food poisoning” or that someone had deliberately poisoned the President’s food, Damachi replied, “The President inherited Obasanjo’s kitchen staff, Yar’Adua has now fired them all, and the kitchen has been cleaned out following the incident. Damachi went on to say that Yar’ Adua did attend functions on both the Saturday and Sunday preceding his illness and ate some food at both of them. “What President eats at a function?” Damachi asked rhetorically. “The President was so sick that the day he signed the budget, he was unable to sign a second piece of legislation awaiting his approval…”
Late Yar’Adua Yar’Adua was known to have stepped hard on his predecessor’s toes.
Upon entering office president Yar’Adua, described by his wife as a very honest man who left no wealth behind; seriously went after the reversal of Nigeria’s public assets that his predecessor had sold to his allies, Aliku Dangote and Femi Otedola.
“In the weeks leading up to Obasanjo’s departure, Dangote’s privately held company has also scooped up a cement plant, a telecoms licence and mining concessions in a rush of privatisations that triggered accusations of cronyism by opposition parties.”
By July of 2007, barely 2 months into office, Yar’Adua held meetings with the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), to query the sale of Nigeria’s refineries to Obasanjo’s henchmen, Aliko Dangote and oil tycoon Femi Otedola. BPE reportedly justified the sale to Bluestar, saying it was transparent, but the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) faulted it, and maintained that the corporation was capable of running them efficiently.
President Yar’Adua after considering the facts presented to him, directed that the sale should be revoked as the exercise was not transparent enough. The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) praised President Yar’Adua’s revocation of the privatization of the refineries. Yar’Adua also suffered from chronic allergic disorder and this was easily attributed to be the direct cause of his death.
The possibility of the poisoning to death of a serving Nigerian president will amount to a grievous crime. The exhumation of late President Yar’Adua’s body may be necessitated as well as a thorough investigation of all who may have been involved in the murder of a president in office.
Late Palestinian premier, Yasser Arafat was recently exhumed due to evidence of polonium poisoning as an investigation into alleged Israeli intelligence poisoning was reopened.
With Agency reports.
