Shehu Sani Reveals How He Protected Obasanjo from Kirikiri Inmates

Human rights activist and former Senator Shehu Sani has shared his experience of protecting former President Olusegun Obasanjo from inmates at Kirikiri Maximum Prison in 1995.

Speaking at the second edition of This Nigeria’s lecture and Award Event themed “25 Years of Unbroken Democracy: Challenges, Prospects, and Possibilities,” Sani recounted the incident that occurred during his imprisonment alongside Obasanjo and the late General Shehu Musa Yar’Adua.

“In 1995, a team of soldiers, policemen, and DSS agents visited my house in Kaduna,” Sani said. “It was a journey that began and lasted for four years. I was picked up from Kaduna and brought to Lagos with the late General Shehu Musa Yar’Adua. From the airport, we were led to the DSS headquarters, where we met President Olusegun Obasanjo.”

Shehu Sani noted that, unlike him, Obasanjo and Yar’Adua were not handcuffed. “Obasanjo looked at me and asked if I had stolen something for them to have handcuffed me. I told him I was an activist.”

As the deputy chairman of the Campaign for Democracy, Sani was transferred to Kirikiri Maximum Prison along with Obasanjo and Yar’Adua. Upon their arrival, they were given blankets and food and allocated cells. However, Obasanjo faced hostility from the inmates, who began shouting and insulting him.

“Naturally, for those of us who were human rights activists, we were popular with inmates,” Sani said. “I told Obasanjo, ‘You are a commander outside, but this is where I command.’ I then talked to the inmates to calm down, that no matter their grievances with Obasanjo, he was now an inmate.”

Sani revealed that he, along with Obasanjo and Yar’Adua, received severe sentences. “I got 15 years, Obasanjo got 15 years, Yar’Adua got life imprisonment. Those of us from the north were sent to southern prisons and those from the south were sent to northern prisons. That was how I found myself in Port Harcourt prison.”

Sani also recounted his time in Port Harcourt prison, where he witnessed the arrival and subsequent execution of activist Ken Saro-Wiwa. “I was in Port Harcourt prison when Ken Saro-Wiwa was brought in and hanged. I could see them from the window,” he said.

The event provided a platform for reflecting on the challenges, prospects, and possibilities of Nigeria’s 25 years of unbroken democracy, with Sani’s personal anecdotes highlighting the harsh realities faced by political prisoners during the military regime.