Former military president, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, says he took the best decision in the interest of Nigeria by annulling the June 12 presidential election in 1993.

In an interview with Channels TV, Mr Babangida claimed that some of the political events he predicted about Nigeria manifested after he had left office as a military general.

“I had to take that decision.

I did that to the best of my knowledge, in the interest of the country.

I did the right thing.

I can sit back and say some of the things I said manifested after I had left,” Mr Babangida said.

While discussing the military regime of Sanni Abacha, the military general said Nigeria faced a military coup that lasted for five years because of impatience.

He said he already drew a program for Nigeria to have an election in five to six months in which the politicians agreed that the same candidates can seek re-election before he handed power over to the interim national government of Ernest Shonekan in 1993.

“Nigeria had a coup and that coup lasted for five years; there is impatience in Nigeria.

I drew a program for Nigeria to have an election in five to six months after the Interim government, so that Nigeria can have an election in November.

We agreed that the same candidate can go back to the people to seek their mandate to run again,” he said.

However, he said the political elites said they were tired of conducting elections, and that led to the hijacking of the government by another military dictator Sanni Abacha.

“The irony of the elites is that they said we are tired of elections.”

Referring to Abacha’s coup, Mr Babangida said, “Somebody said you are tired of elections, I will give you time to rest, and took over the government and ran it for five years.”

The 1993 election was won by the candidate of the Social Democratic Party, Moshood Kashimawo Abiola, who was later arrested in 1994 by the Abacha regime for declaring himself president, and his death on July 7, 1998.