- Book Title: A Journey in Service
- Author: Ibrahim B. Babangida
- Publishers: Bookcraft
- Reviewer: Emeaba Emeaba
- Pages: 440
In the annals of Nigerian history, few figures loom as large—or as polarizing—as Ibrahim Babangida, the military ruler who held sway from 1985 to 1993. Known to some as the “Maradona” of politics for his nimble maneuvering and to others as an “evil genius” for his controversial decisions, Babangida has long been a cipher, his legacy a battleground of competing narratives. His new autobiography, A Journey in Service, promises to peel back the layers of this enigmatic leader. What emerges, however, is a portrait both revealing and reticent—a calculated blend of candor and evasion that invites readers into the mind of a man wrestling with his past, yet unwilling to fully confront its shadows.
The book opens with a disarming simplicity, tracing Babangida’s arc from humble origins in Minna to the corridors of power in Lagos. His prose, clear and occasionally lyrical, sketches a life shaped by ambition and camaraderie, from sharing shirts with childhood friend Mamman Vatsa in their bachelor days to navigating the treacherous currents of military hierarchy. This early narrative sets the stage for his presidency, a period he frames as one of service and sacrifice. He highlights tangible achievements—economic reforms, infrastructure projects, and institutions like MAMSER and DIFFRI—casting himself as a steward of progress amid turbulent times. Yet, as the story unfolds, it becomes clear that A Journey in Service is less a reckoning with history than a meticulous exercise in self-fashioning.
At the heart of the book lies the annulment of the June 12, 1993, election—a wound that still festers in Nigeria’s collective memory. Widely regarded as the nation’s freest and fairest vote, it was poised to usher in civilian rule until Babangida’s regime abruptly voided the results, plunging the country into chaos. For the first time, Babangida expresses regret, acknowledging Moshood Abiola’s victory and calling the annulment an “accident of history.” “The nation is entitled to expect my expression of regret,” he writes, a statement that has stirred both praise and skepticism. Yet, his attempt to shift blame to General Sani Abacha and other officers feels like a sleight of hand—an effort to cast himself as a reluctant participant rather than the architect of a decision that altered Nigeria’s trajectory. The admission, while striking, lacks the depth of accountability that might have transformed it into a genuine mea culpa.
This selective candor extends to other fraught episodes. The execution of Mamman Vatsa, convicted of plotting a coup in 1986, is recounted with a mix of nostalgia and froideur. Babangida paints a vivid picture of their closeness— “we did several things together as peers”—before revealing a “recurrent peer jealousy” he now perceives in hindsight. The decision to approve Vatsa’s death, he argues, was a stark choice “between saving a friend’s life and the nation’s future.” It’s a poignant reflection, yet one that sidesteps broader questions about the trial’s fairness or the political climate that made such a choice inevitable. Similarly, his discussion of Nigeria’s first coup in 1966 challenges the “Igbo coup” label by highlighting the diverse ethnic makeup of the plotters and the role of Major John Obienu in quelling it. This revisionist take, while intriguing, feels more like a footnote than a fulsome exploration of a pivotal moment that sparked the Biafran War.
Perhaps the most unguarded moments come in Babangida’s tender tribute to his late wife, Maryam, Nigeria’s iconic first lady until her death in 2009. “Her ebony beauty set off enchanting eyes,” he writes, recalling a partnership marked by mutual devotion and rare discord. Their love story, woven through four decades, offers a humanizing counterpoint to the book’s political machinations, revealing a man capable of vulnerability—if only in the personal sphere. Yet even here, the narrative serves a purpose, reinforcing Babangida’s image as a figure of depth and relatability amid his sterner legacy.
What A Journey in Service omits is as telling as what it includes. The assassination of journalist Dele Giwa, the mysterious $12.4 billion Gulf War oil windfall, and other stains on Babangida’s tenure are met with a resounding silence. These absences lend the book an air of strategic curation, as if Babangida seeks to polish his record rather than illuminate it. The timing of its release, amid Nigeria’s current struggles, and the lavish donations at its launch by people who have never set up a business, manufactured any products or even sold any goods suggest is an eloquent reminder of his enduring clout within the elite.
Critics and admirers alike will find fodder in these pages. Babangida’s willingness to address June 12, however imperfectly, has won plaudits from some, including President Bola Tinubu, who hailed his courage at the launch. Others, like Abiola’s son Jamiu, see it as a belated balm, a step toward peace if not justice. Yet the book’s detractors decry its evasions, arguing that it sidesteps the raw honesty Nigeria deserves. This divide mirrors Babangida’s own duality—a leader lauded for infrastructure yet lambasted for corruption, a reformer who clung to power until forced out.
In the tradition of political memoir, A Journey in Service is a study in the malleability of memory. It offers a window into a complex figure, but the view is obscured by the author’s own hand. Readers seeking a definitive account of Babangida’s rule will emerge unsatisfied; those intrigued by the interplay of power and narrative will find a richer vein to mine. Sophisticated yet guarded, the book is a testament to its author’s skill at controlling the story—even if, in the end, it reveals more through its silences than its words. Babangida’s journey, it seems, remains as much a riddle as the man himself, a legacy still contested in the crucible of history.
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♦ Dr. Emeaba, the author of “A Dictionary of Literature,” writes dime novels in the style of the Onitsha Market Literature sub-genre.
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