Obasanjo Sought Third Term With ‘Threats And Money’ – Bugaje Insists

Political activist and former federal lawmaker, Dr. Usman Bugaje, has refuted former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s recent denial of ever seeking a third term in office, insisting that the ex-leader made desperate attempts to elongate his stay in power.

The controversy over a possible third term dominated the political landscape in 2006, when a proposed amendment to the 1999 Constitution sought to extend the presidential limit from two to three terms.

Though packaged alongside other constitutional reforms, it was widely believed to have been sponsored by allies of Obasanjo, who was concluding his second term.

After heated debates in both chambers of the National Assembly, the amendment was thrown out, effectively ending speculation of Obasanjo’s continuation in office.

The failure of the plan paved the way for the 2007 general elections, which produced the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua as Obasanjo’s successor.

Civil society groups, opposition politicians, and even members of the then-ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) were instrumental in mobilizing against the proposal, which critics argued would have derailed Nigeria’s democratic progress.

The discussion whether there was indeed a third term bid or not has continued despite many elections and presidents after Obasanjo.

As the 2027 election fever continues to reignite the controversy, Obasanjo was forced to address the issue during a democracy dialogue organized by the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation in Ghana last week.

He dismissed the long-debated controversy, declaring, “I’m not a fool. If I wanted a third term, I know how to go about it.

“And there is no Nigerian dead or alive that would say I called him and told him I wanted a third term,” Obasanjo said.

But appearing on Arise Television’s Morning Show on Monday, Bugaje, who served in the National Assembly during Obasanjo’s tenure, insisted that lawmakers were not only aware of the third-term bid but also faced direct intimidation and inducements.

“I can confirm to you that Obasanjo looked for a third term. He did everything that he could within his power to get a third term, but he failed to do so,” Bugaje said.

He dismissed Obasanjo’s argument as a matter of semantics.

“Now, the fact that he did not take a telephone to make a particular call to anybody is not sufficient evidence that he did not look for a third term.

“It’s just a matter of style. But all of us in the National Assembly at that time knew beyond any doubt that he worked day and night, and many of us were threatened by his own agents,” he explained.

Bugaje recalled specific incidents of pressure, including the alleged harassment of Senator Victor Lar, then leader of the Northern caucus in the House of Representatives, who he claimed was forced into hiding ahead of a crucial meeting to resist the third-term agenda.

“Those people who actually distributed the money and threatened us are alive. Those who received the money are alive.

“Those who refused to receive the money are alive. There is sufficient evidence…this is a matter that is incontrovertible, there is no way he can deny it,” Bugaje stressed.