There were 8 coup attempts against Abacha – Al-Mustapha
Major Hamza Al-Mustapha is the former Chief Security Officer (CSO) to late the Head of State, General Sani Abacha. He was a subject of political discourse throughout the period of his incarceration and even after he regained his freedom during the ex-Pres
You were one of the most powerful men during the reign of ex-Head of State Sani Abacha. Now do you have any regret, considering the events that followed his death?
Regret in life? Whenever such question is asked, an individual should first of all think deep before saying anything. There is individual destiny and also collective destiny. It is part of my destiny to go through all that I have gone through, so it is an experience I could not have gotten in any school or anywhere else. But when such things come, we should be prepared to take them. I didn’t join the Army because of money, so, there is no issue of regret. But anytime am asked that question, l look onto God Almighty.
Can you still recollect some of your experiences?
I have created an association and I have lawyers who are still bailing people out. The fact that I regained my freedom does not mean I have forgotten what happened. I was in three prisons in Nigeria. One of the newspapers in Lagos wrote a story that we were living large in Ikoyi prison because it was in town and that we had the privilege of smelling the best soups in Ikoyi. So we should be taken to a prison that was far away from the town
All that did not bother me because they did not reflect who I am. My God who created me knows who I am. You cannot force me to toy with the oath of office and oath of allegiance which I have taken in this country. I cannot compromise that, no matter what.
For example, the media is only aware of three coup attempts against the government of late former Head of State General Abacha, but there were more than eight (attempts) and the issue is that if during all those eight attempts I or anybody had compromised, we would have gone. We were not brought up that way. You can bring the entire resources of this world, yet you will be unable to buy our loyalty. I and my colleagues are not like that; we will never betray anyone. And because I refused to betray, I became an enemy to some big people who had invested in the media. They used the media to paint us black; that is what I suffered, nothing more than that.
Going forward, are we likely to see you in politics?
First of all, it was wrong that I went about soon after I was released. When I was released, there were numerous invitations from within the North and the South and there was a lot to be decided and I was visiting. Some invitations were from traditional rulers, some were invitations by associations that I had relationships with. I registered so many youth associations as far back as 1984 and they are now big people. Also, there were invitations by widows’ association in Nigeria. I was actually going round to re-establish one of the six points that l gave you when you asked me the first question.
In 2015, we went to this same Southern Kaduna when they had clashes there. I gathered some of my friends to carry relief materials there. We went and saw mass graves of men, youth, women and children. So, from there, we began to expand; there was no area in the entire Southern Kaduna that I did not visit and I did that on my own. I did it to create grounds for lasting peace, so that they could live in peace.
The President of SUKAPU (Southern Kaduna People Union) was working with me; he is still working with me because it is believed that politicians caused the problem. But because of my work, the people wrote that Al- Mustapha has political ambition. They looked at it from a myopic point of view, but my concern is peace in the land. Recently, SUKAPU brought a delegation here for me to go and talk to the same traditional rulers, talk to the youth, talk to the Christians and Muslims like I did before. The issue of having religious differences, ethnic differences is for shallow minded people. Once you are a leader, you are a leader for all. I have no political ambitions. I am not a card carrying member of any political party.