I rejected N250m offer to back Obasanjo’s third term — Aliyu

Former House of Representatives Minority Leader, Farouq Aliyu, has alleged that he was offered N250 million to support the controversial third-term bid of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, but rejected the money.

Aliyu also claimed that former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Masari, and former Majority Leader, Abdul Ningi, were each offered N400 million to support the proposed constitutional amendment.

He made the allegations during an interview on the Naija Unfiltered podcast published on YouTube on Friday.

The third-term controversy was one of the major political disputes of Obasanjo’s administration, which lasted from 1999 to 2007.

In May 2006, the National Assembly rejected proposed constitutional amendments that would have allowed the then president to seek a third consecutive term.

Obasanjo has repeatedly denied pursuing a third term.

However, Aliyu insisted that the agenda was real, alleging that efforts were made to secure the support of lawmakers through financial inducements.

He said the then Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Nuhu Ribadu, contacted him during discussions over the proposal and asked him to come to Abuja for a meeting with Obasanjo.

Aliyu said he initially declined the invitation but later agreed to meet the former president.

According to him, he discussed the proposed constitutional amendment with Obasanjo and maintained that the plan would not succeed.

He subsequently met an unnamed individual at Ribadu’s request and was offered N250 million, he alleged.

“Third term agenda was real. In fact, N250 million was given to me. I did not take it,” Aliyu said.

The former lawmaker further alleged that Masari, who was Speaker of the House at the time, was offered N400 million, while Ningi was offered the same amount.

“Masari, who was the speaker then, N400 million was offered. He did not take it. Abdul Ningi, the majority leader, N400 million naira was offered to him. He did not take it,” he said.

Aliyu also claimed that other lawmakers were offered at least N50 million to support the agenda.

“N50 million was dashed to small fries. They paid minimum of N50 million,” he alleged.

The former minority leader credited several political figures, including former military Head of State Muhammadu Buhari, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and then Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, with helping to frustrate the proposed constitutional amendment.

The National Assembly ultimately rejected the amendment in 2006, bringing the third-term bid to an end.