Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese Matthew Hassan Kukah says former FCT Minister Nasir El-Rufai revoked a plot of land allocated to former Head of State Gen. Yakubu Gowon in Abuja.
Kukah disclosed this Tuesday in Abuja while reviewing Gowon’s autobiography: “My Life of Duty and Allegiance.”
He said Gowon had no property in Abuja on returning from exile after the 1975 coup. The land was allocated later following intervention by senior military officers, including Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, who also named a crescent after him.
“He mobilised resources to try and start building. He begins to build. Then El-Rufai, who was minister of the FCT, revoked the land,” Kukah said.
The bishop said retired Gen. Theophilus Danjuma and others later intervened, helping Gowon recover the property.
Kukah described the memoir, published by Havilah Group, as a 900-page account of Nigeria’s political history divided into 36 chapters. He noted that much of Gowon’s personal archives were lost in fire incidents in Bakori and Kaduna, making the book largely dependent on his recollections.
“It’s important to underscore the fact that whatever you read in the book is the result of what the author was able to recall,” Kukah said.
He also highlighted sections of the memoir detailing Gowon’s relationship with former President Olusegun Obasanjo, noting evidence of trust between them despite political tensions after Gowon’s overthrow.
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