Abacha's most feared Chief Security Officer, Al Mustapha, says if it is the will of Nigerians, he'll run for president in 2019.
Retired Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, who served as late General Sani Abacha’s dreaded Chief Security Officer (CSO) in the ‘90s, has announced that if it is the wishes of the people, he’ll run for the office of president of Nigeria in 2019.
Abacha was Nigeria's ruler from 1993 to 1998.
“I am not going to announce myself contesting for a presidential seat, but if people say so, that is the wishes of the people”, Al-Mustapha said in an interview conducted in Kaduna, shortly after a meeting with the Leaders Eagle Eye Forum, a group begging him to throw his hat into the presidential ring come 2019.
Al Mustapha added that: “I am not a power tasty person. If I am, I would have lost my personality long before now, but when people gather to speak and the decision is by them, then it is a call to serve”.
Al Mustapha presidency plan
Presidential campaign posters of Al-Mustapha first hit the streets of Abuja in 2017.
On Thursday, April 20, 2017, Al-Mustapha floated his political party called Green Party of Nigeria.
“Finally, the real people’s party has landed. Please give praise to our creator for rare beautiful gift to the people. The future is GPN and GPN is the future,” Al-Mustapha said at the unveiling of his party’s logo.
Kudirat Abiola's murder
Al-Mustapha has been credited with most of the atrocities that went down during Abacha’s draconian reign, including assassination attempts and outright murder on the streets.
He stood trial for 15 years for the June 9, 1996, murder of Kudirat Abiola whose husband, MKO, had won the 1993 presidential election annulled by then Head of State Ibrahim Babangida.
On Friday, July 12, 2013, the Court of Appeal in Lagos discharged and acquitted Hamza Al-Mustapha on the grounds that there was not enough evidence to lock him up for the murder of Kudirat Abiola.
I'm often misrepresented
Al-Mustapha had said of his time as Abacha’s chief enforcer: “I am often misrepresented. I discharged my duties as required which was to protect the Head of State, protect the government and the people of the country.
“Anything aside that would have made me a traitor and I was never a traitor, I am not a traitor and will never be a traitor.’’
Al Mustapha fancies himself a statesman and public speaker these days.
During a lecture in Akure in 2016, Al Mustapha said: “My concern is patriotism and true love for the country. Our desire is to invest and allow our institutions to stay rather than forcing them into decay. That is what we should be cautious about.
“Those in leadership and those being led; particularly those who have attained statesmanship position should understand there is heavier responsibility on their shoulder and they should realize that this country is too important to be allowed to fail. We must support all those in power.’’
Until Abacha’s death in 1998, Al Mustapha was seen as the head of the dictator’s strike force—a loose arrangement of hitmen who were under instructions to gun down supposed enemies of the government.