R
Richard Ogunsile
Guest
Veteran Nigerian comedian, Atunyota Alleluya Akpobome, popularly known as Ali Baba, has recounted a harrowing experience involving Nigeria’s former military ruler, General Sani Abacha.
Naija News recalls that Sani Abacha ruled Nigeria with an iron fist from 1993 until he died in 1998 following a coup that ousted interim President Ernest Shonekan.
Abacha’s administration gained notoriety for its violations of human rights, as many opposition leaders were subjected to imprisonment, torture, or assassination throughout his tenure.
During his participation in Leadership Podcast, Ali Baba characterized his encounter with the former leader as a “near-death experience.”
The 59-year-old comedian reminisced about a specific occasion when he was invited to serve as the host for an event in Abuja during Abacha’s rule.
On that occasion, Ali Baba introduced a cultural group from Akwa Ibom that was set to perform.
He said: “The first close encounter I had with death was with Sani Abacha.
“When Abacha was president, Ernest Shonekan was removed, so I went to do an event in Abuja, and it was time for the Akwa Ibom cultural group to perform. At the time, Abacha was wearing one of those dark Rayban sunglasses that could be folded.”
Ali Baba recalled how he boldly addressed Abacha directly, asking him to remove his sunglasses.
“So then they started dancing; I stopped them and faced Abacha, saying, ‘Your Excellency, sir, it’s almost 10; why are you wearing dark shades? Don’t you want to see their performance? Remove this shade nah,” he said.
To his astonishment, Abacha acquiesced; however, the atmosphere in the room intensified as Ali Baba observed operatives from the State Security Service (SSS), also referred to as the Department of State Services (DSS), advancing backstage.
“He [Abacha] then removed the glasses and was talking to his aide. As soon as they started, I saw the DSS officers going backstage to wait for God knows who,” Ali Baba explained, recalling the growing anxiety he felt.
In a moment of fear, Ali Baba admitted that he chose to sit beside the iron-fisted president rather than retreat to the safety of the backstage.
“I went down the stage to where Abacha was and sat on the ground next to him. He made jokes about me and asked why I refused to go backstage.
“I said, ‘Don’t worry, sir, they can come and arrest me here,’” he added, capturing the absurd tension of the moment.
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