I Have 37 Children and I Care So Much about All of Them

me to the party thus changing the status quo in the state. He even confessed to that. Jailed by Buhari Regime

But for the military intervention it was going to be that way. Unfortunately, on the December 31, 1983, General Muhammadu Buhari struck and we were all sent out of office and I became a victim of military intervention. I was called to report to the Ilorin Headquarters of the Nigerian Army. They were to take us to our respective homes where they would search our houses. I was being taken to New Bussa just to disgrace me along with others. Unfortunately, as God would have it we were waiting for a vehicle to convey us when they said the military truck was bad. Suddenly, there was a signal that all ex-ministers should report to Lagos. With that I escaped being disgraced in my village. We were taken to Bonny Camp in Lagos.

Fortunately, the Director of Military Intelligence, Haliru Akilu, who was in charge of operations; we knew each other very well. He was wondering why I should be there since I had only spent three months in office. I had not even taken any salary and allowance. The military asked me to give details of my appointments. They also asked if I had any foreign bank account. You know that Buhari was very strict with anybody operating foreign accounts because a special investigation panel was set up and made up of the military and senior legal persons. I had a foreign account but what happened was that when I received my letter of appointment as minister, one of the conditions was that no minister should operate a foreign account. But I had a foreign account because until then, I was a private person. So I said on the basis of that letter of appointment and on that condition I wrote a letter to the President asking him to grant me casual leave to go and close the account.

The tribunal requested for the letter which I made available. They took me to Ilorin Prison. They requested for the address of where they could locate it. I gave them the address of my Personal Secretary. They found the letter. But there was no reply before they struck. They saw the later but could not believe it. They scrutinised it, yet I could not believe not knowing that there was somebody very close to me called Akanmode from the present Kogi State. He was my Personal Secretary. When he married I took him to London. I did not know that he took my personal documents in which my bank statement was included. When we came back I searched for it but did not see it. Eventually, that same man was the one who took that file to General Tunde Idiagbon because when I was a minister I had confidence in him. He contacted one contractor in Ibadan and used my letter-headed paper without my consent. The man gave him some money. When later there was change of government, the man knew he was not going to get the job so he demanded a refund of the money. By the time he demanded the money, I was under house arrest. I asked Akanmode if he disclosed the transaction to me and he said no. Then, the man said he was going to impound all his belongings, sell it and get his money back. Akanmode thought that I would come to his rescue. His brother was working with the governor as permanent secretary and they thought they had found a cage to hold me.

That letter I wrote saved me. They took the same letter to Lagos and I confessed and they discovered I never operated a single business. They could not find anything. I did not use my position to enrich myself. They still took me to Ilorin Prison. I was released but I was again asked to face another panel. When my case was mentioned members of the panel were shaking their heads and so again based on that I was released, discharged and acquitted. I suffered. I was in military intelligence headquarters for almost one month alone. Even if I wanted to eat I had to bang the iron gate and doors before soldiers would come up and give me water and food. From there they took me to No. 10 Awolowo Road, Ikoyi in Lagos for another month. I suffered and my family equally felt the suffering. When I came out after the change of government I was doing petty business, repairing fridges and small contracts.

I went to Ajaokuta and did other small jobs to keep my life and family going. Paying the school fees of my children was very difficult. When I was even in prison, my chairmanship of the Nigerian Paper Mill was also under probe because there were allegations that I did many things but as God would have it, we did a very wonderful job in that place. At the end of the day General Idiagbon commended me for a job well done. As he was commending me, I was in prison. There was one man again I helped who wrote a petition to Idiagbon to come and investigate the activities of the mill. The Administrative Secretary of the Board of Directors was contacted (an Igbo man) when he was contacted he told the panel that of all the chairmen he had worked with, he had never met a decent chairman like Dantoro. (I had not met him since then. May God bless him). I even asked the chairman of the Tenders Board that since I was not interested in contracts, we should appoint the chairman of the finance committee to handle anything contract. I did well there. I reorganised the whole place for efficiency and everybody was happy about it. The man said it. This was an Igbo man, a Christian for that matter. I was screened from head to toe but I came out unblemished. Throne andTroubles

When my brother died in 2000, Niger State Government wrote a letter to the kingmakers through the chairman of the local council that they knew through records and traditions that there were seven king-makers in the Kingdom. About three were then dead. The state government’s letter also specified that since the three were dead they had formed a quorum. Therefore, the government advised that the king-makers should go ahead and select a new Emir; also, that they should equally ensure that the decision was binding on them. Not knowing that they (government of Y.Y. Kure) had a plan. But the kingmakers did their job. Man proposes but God disposes. When the meeting was convened, about 10 of us vied for the position. When the king-makers screened us, only three of us were left. The selectors now asked who they wanted to succeed the late Emir. It was unanimous that I should ascend the throne as the new Emir.

The government was not happy with the decision. They opposed that decision. So the minutes of the meeting and everybody in attendance was sent to Governor Kure. When he got to know that it was Dantoro that was selected by the king-makers, he was upset. Kure said they should go back and hold another meeting. I was smarter; immediately I knew they were not going to support me I quickly got the minutes of the meeting and the letter written by the state government. I went to the State High Court in Minna and filed a case. They never knew it was going to be so. I engaged the services of Chief Wole Olanipekun, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria. We got an injunction from the court that the government should not go ahead to hold another meeting as directed by the governor. The government still went ahead and it became a legal battle. The judge had to withdraw from the case because he said he was an interested party and was not going to sit in judgement. The court then pushed the case to Suleija. There were all kinds of drama during the proceedings. The government was all out not to see me ascend the throne of our forefathers. I spent so much money pursuing the case. They even gave out money to woo a lot of people but I never bulged because they were not God. At the end of the day, the judgment was in my favour. My lawyer now advised that I should go home and get the normal ritual of the Emirship completed.

I did. People came up to Mokwa on motorbikes and bicycles to congratulate me. Some even came to New Bussa. I went to my palace for the normal ritual. Immediately I was done and given the regalia of office by my people, the government now said they should chase me out. They sent policemen to arrest me, that I installed myself as the Emir without the consent of the government. I was brought to Minna to meet the Police Commissioner, the State Director of State Security Services and others. When they asked me why I installed myself, I told them that I did not install myself but went through the right thing according to our customs and traditions. I equally told them that they were a Federal Police and not a State Police and therefore should uphold the judgment of the competent court of law which declared me as the Emir-elect. They asked me for the court Judgment which I produced.

The Director of SSS, Commissioner of Police now spoke to the Inspector-General of Police who told them the truth that I won the case and should be protected. The commissioner now apologised but advised that I should not go back to my palace. They knew what would happen if the government was seriously interested. They could organise anything to eliminate me. That was how I landed in Kaduna State under the escort of the police. But there was news in the print and broadcast media that Dantoro had been declared wanted by the police. When I got to Kaduna people were surprised that the same Dantoro declared wanted was being escorted by the police. The government filed an appeal against the judgment. I also came out victorious at the appeal court. They were not happy. Trust the leaders; I am not trying to mention names. I know what they did. Even to the extent of going to Abuja to do what they did.

At that time I was close to Maj. Gen. Buhari. They wanted to see how they could separate the two of us. I surmounted all the obstacles. At the end of the day I got another judgment in my favour. They now went to the Supreme Court. It was a difficult journey. I had to sell some of my property and borrowed money to pay for my legal fees. A lot of people can testify to this. Nobody was behind me but God. At the Supreme Court, a number of things happened but the judgment did not take up to 10 minutes for the judges to pass judgment in my favour. The court declared that they should hand over the Emir’s stool to me. For four years and four months, I battled them. Can you imagine that after the ruling, the governor was the first to phone and congratulate me. He further said they were welcoming me to Minna to collect my staff of office. I turned back and went to the Government House in Minna where a lot of people were waiting for me. Kure now questioned some people, “You said Dantoro is not so popular. So, who are these people?”

You see, people went round telling lies against me to curry favour which is the problem of our leadership and the third world countries. It is all lies and sycophancy. Once you are no more there, nobody cares if you exist. That is how I survived what I call my holocaust. I am happy; I love my people and when I came, I thought of what I could do for them. God has brought me to this position and has been with me all along. He put me here because He wants to use me to better the lives of my people.. Playing Politics with Tinubu

I knew Bola Ahmed Tinubu when we were at the National Assembly as senators. He belonged to a different party (SDP) while I was in NRC. But we had a common interest when it came to telling the truth. We said it as it were then. He knew my vision even when the June 12 issue was in the front burner. I could see the injustices and I stood by fairness because I detest injustice. You can see that I identified myself with the aspiration of Nigerians. At one time he said he wanted me to go and see Late Chief Moshood Kashimawo Abiola but I told him I never had any need from Abiola. If I went there, that meant I was going there for money. But what we were doing was right and posterity will judge us. So we had a lot of things in common and we had been friends since then. He saw me as being straightforward, honest and sincere in all my dealings with him. Not for any material gain. In fact, when I began my legal sojourn in the Emirship tussle he also supported me in terms of advice because it was a tough battle for me. It was tough taking on the government and we had to employ the services of a senior advocate of Nigeria in the person of Wole Olanipekun. When God made me the Emir I said this man was there when I was in dire need of help so why can’t I use my position to make him what I feel will help him in future politically. That was why I honoured him with the title of ‘Jagaban.’ Jagaban means ‘Leader of Warriors.’ Reconciling Babangida and Buhari

I made sure I brought the two (Ibrahim Babangida and Muhammadu Buhari) of them together. Firstly, when Babangida visited me in New Bussa we discussed a lot and the issue of their relationship came up. I then told Babangida that I would confer him with a title as ‘Maiyakin Borgu’ and also give him another title to give Buhari as ‘Majen Borgu’ (Iroko tree) and he politely accepted. Buhari agreed to the offer and said he was not going to give him ‘Tokuce.’ In the traditional institution, if you give somebody something very significant, he will give you something in return. But Buhari accepted the offer and the date was fixed for the turbaning of the two together with Chief Sunday Awoniyi. It took place in New Bussa. It was an historic occasion where they embraced and actually reconciled. A word for Buhari

All I can tell the ruling class is that Nigerians want change. Nigerians cried for change and God has brought change. They (the All Progressives Congress) should understand that they have been brought there for the change. They should be very sincere and honest to Nigerians. What I want this time is that a Nigerian no matter where he is, whether here or in the Diaspora, should see himself as Nigerian first regardless of whether you are Igbo, Hausa, Kanuri or you are Christian or Muslim. Therefore, the leadership must provide that much needed service and show by example how things could be done better. Any Nigerian wherever he is can walk up to the President and say, ‘Look Sir, this is what I want. You are my President’. The President has a big role to play to ensure that Nigerians will have confidence in him and his leadership because people may think he will only listen to Hausa people or people around him. That is not true after all he is an experienced administrator now. As a former Head of State, he knows Nigeria now better than before. He should use experience that Nigeria will become renewed. Ultimate Desire

Life is all mystery. It will end one day. How will our lives end? We are alive today but we do not know how and when it will end. The fear of the unknown is there but all we need to do is to pray to Allah that God in His infinite mercy will make us end well so that people can remember us when we are gone for good. That is it. What I desire is, of course, my state. We want Borgu State. That is my desire in life. That is one of the best things that can happen. Once we get Borgu State during my time, my dream is fulfilled. My family and religion

I am happy with my children and entire family. The way I was brought up is the same way I am bringing up my children: disciplined and obedient to elders. I have given them all the opportunities to get educated. Both male and female are mostly graduates. I have 37 children. There are those who were not fortunate when I was incarcerated and suffering. I could not make it up to them. Like I said, at a time even to pay the schools fees was a problem. I also make sure I send them to private schools, not public schools; that is the reason why they got first-class education. It is not religion that matters, it is the knowledge that you acquire at the end of the day that is important to me. Religion to me is a matter of conscience. If you want you can be anything you want.