Former military president Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) is set to launch his long-awaited autobiography, A Journey in Service. The book will be officially released on February 20, 2025, at the Congress Hall of the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja.
This release comes 32 years after Babangida left office in August 1993. His time as Nigeria’s head of state was marked by major economic and political events, including the controversial Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP), the annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential election, and the unresolved murder of journalist Dele Giwa.
During his rule from 1985 to 1993, Babangida earned the nicknames “Evil Genius” and “Maradona” due to his strategic political maneuvers.
Addressing these labels, he once stated, “That’s the very good thing about the Nigerian media and Nigerian people, you have to anticipate them. If you anticipate them then you live well with them. They call me ‘evil genius,’ I marvel at that. The contradiction, you can’t be evil and then a genius. The definition of Maradona I got from the media is because of deft political moves. That’s the way the media described it.”
Babangida stepped down from power in 1993, handing over to an interim government led by Ernest Shonekan. However, this government was short-lived, as General Sani Abacha soon took over in a military coup.
Over the years, Babangida has given interviews to both local and international media but has often avoided discussing some of the most controversial moments of his rule. At one point, he expressed uncertainty about writing an autobiography, stating that he was unsure if Nigerians would be interested in reading the account of a former military ruler. However, he later changed his stance and decided to document his experiences in A Journey in Service.
The book launch will be held alongside a fundraising event for the IBB Presidential Library. According to a statement from the Board of Trustees of the IBB Presidential Library Foundation, the event will be chaired by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, with President Bola Tinubu as the special guest of honor.
Ghana’s former president, Nana Akufo-Addo, will deliver the keynote address, while former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is expected to review the book. Several notable figures are also set to attend, including former Nigerian presidents Muhammadu Buhari, Yakubu Gowon, Abdulsalami Abubakar, and Goodluck Jonathan. Others expected at the event include former Defense Minister Theophilus Danjuma and BUA Group chairman Abdul Samad Rabiu, who are chief launchers of the book.
