Former Military President Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) has stated that he does not know who killed Dele Giwa, the late editor of Newswatch.
Speaking at the launch of his autobiography, “A Journey in Service,” in Abuja on Thursday, February 20, 2025, Babangida expressed hope that the truth behind the assassination would one day be uncovered.
He said, “The hysteria of the media did not help the investigation of the Giwa murder. As is typical of the Nigerian media, the direction was marked by an adversarial attitude towards the government, which had remained the hallmark of the Nigerian media from its colonial heyday.
“It was an attitude of ‘we versus the government’ that has remained today. It is a situation in which the government is adjudged guilty even before the evidence in a case is adduced.
“When the Obasanjo civilian administration reopened the Giwa case at the Oputa Panel on Human and Civil Rights, I expected that the police and lawyers would come forward with new evidence as to their findings on the Giwa murder over the years.
“Nothing of such happened. The Giwa, like all mysterious murders, has remained unsolved after so many years. I keep hoping it will be uncovered in our lifetime or after us. More often than not, mysterious crimes are solved long after their commission.”
Giwa was killed by a parcel bomb at his home in Ikeja, Lagos State, on October 19, 1986. The case remains one of Nigeria’s most infamous unsolved murders, and Babangida’s regime has long been suspected of involvement.
Two days before the incident, a senior official of the Directorate of Military Intelligence, had accused Giwa of illegally importing and stockpiling arms and ammunition to stage a socialist revolution in Nigeria.
Alarmed at the charge, Giwa quickly briefed his lawyer, Gani Fawehinmi.
The following day, a security chief, Colonel Halilu Akilu, called to reassure Giwa that the accusation had resulted from a misunderstanding, that the matter had been cleared, and that Giwa should think nothing of it.
According to Ray Ekpu, Giwa’s colleague at Newswatch, a few hours later, a government emissary arrived at Giwa’s Ikeja residence. His son, Billy, collected the parcel and handed it to his father, who was seated at the dining table in the company of Kayode Soyinka, the London correspondent of Newswatch, who was visiting from the UK. The envelope bore the seal of the Presidency and was marked “To be opened by addressee only.”
Earlier, the former President expressed regret over the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election.
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