TEN years after, the anger arising from the
impeachment and subsequent imprisonment of former
Bayelsa State Governor, Diepreye Solomon Peter
Alamie-yeseigha by former President Olusegun
Obasanjo’s administration is still reverberating even
though Alamieyeseigha claims he has forgiven Obasanjo.
Alamieyeseigha, who spoke to Saturday Vanguard in
his country home in Yenagoa, said that he had forgiven all
those who plotted and sent him to jail purely for political
reasons even though the experience remains very painful
to him.
The former governor was impeached and removed from
office in December 2005 and was subsequently sent to jail
for alleged mismanagement of Bayelsa State funds.
Some of his property alleged to have been secured with
stolen funds in and outside Nigeria were confiscated and
given to Bayelsa State by the Economic and Financial
Crimes Commission (EFCC) working in conjunction with
foreign security agencies.
But Alamieyeseigha, who was granted state pardon by
his former deputy governor and immediate past
President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, last year, said that
Obasanjo has not known peace because of the role he
played in events leading to his impeachment, arrest and
subsequent imprisonment.
He recalled that Obasanjo nearly fainted the first time he
met him after his release from prison. He said the former
president, who met him accidentally at the Katsina
Airport became jittery on seeing him and managed to
shake hands with him. Alamieyeseigha said: “I have
forgiven all those who plotted against me, including former
President Obasanjo. I know all those who plotted against
me and sent me to jail. I cannot be living in the past as it
does not help me in any way.
“What I passed through is painful all right but it would
not have happened if it was not permitted by God. It is
even more important to me that I am still alive today
because I passed through many shadows of the valleys of
death and still came out of them. ‘’I have met Obasanjo
at very close quarters twice since I came out of prison.
I did not know that he was at the VIP Lounge at the
Katsina Airport to attend the marriage of the late
President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s daughter. Obasanjo
came face to face with me at the airport when I went to
use one of the rest rooms. It happened that as I opened
the door to ease myself, I saw Obasanjo sitting face to
face with me and he almost passed out.
“But I held his hands. He was scared and he felt uneasy
all through. Then he began to ask ‘DSP, DSP, DSP!
What have I done to deserve shaking your hands?’
There were many people there, one of them was Kenny
Martins, the then chairman of the Police Equipment
Fund.
“I told Obasanjo ‘I was only shaking you for two
reasons: one-because of the fear of the Almighty God,
who created us and two, for the fact that I am the
Ganuma Katsina and you are a visitor to my emirate
and tradition demands that I should welcome
visitors’. “That prompted Kenny to get up also and greet
me, saying ‘great leader, great leader’ and he came and
hugged me.’’
The former governor said his second post-prison
encounter with Obasanjo took place aboard a Dubai-
bound flight where the former president met him seated in
the business class and addressed him as ‘Fayose’ out of
fear . His words: “The second encounter with Obasanjo
was when we met on a flight going to Dubai. When
Obasanjo came, I was already seated in the Business
Class and he had no choice but to greet me.
But because of possible fear of seeing me, Obasanjo
called out ‘Fayose, Fayose, Fayose.’ I protested to him
that I am not Fayose and I said: ‘Former President
Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Aremu Obasanjo, you are
a devil incarnate.’ “I warned him not to talk again or he
would face my anger. And I tell you, throughout the
flight he could not say anything to me.
The only thing Obasanjo managed to say was to ask me
whether I was the only one who had ever been sent to the
prison. ‘DSP, is it only you that entered prison? Don’t
you remember that I was also imprisoned? You entered
prison and I also did.’’ In spite of his criticism of the
former president, Alamieyeseigha, still has some kind
words for Obasanjo.
Describing Obasanjo as a leader, who keeps his word
and works hard, the former governor said he has a
dossier on Obasanjo and would reveal it in his
forthcoming memoirs to enable Nigerians know what the
man had been doing since 1966.
“But one thing I know about Obasanjo is that he is a
leader. If Obasanjo gives you his word, it remains his
bond. You can call him any time of the night, and he will
pick his phone directly.
He is ready to sit with you on how to solve a problem
but he would not allow you to talk. That is the type of
character he is. I have a dossier on Obasanjo and I will
expose him and Nigerians will read it in my memoir,”
Alamieyeseigha said.
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