Maryam Abacha has dismissed claims her late husband looted Nigeria, saying “Nigerians are fools” for believing unproven allegations about the former military ruler.
Maryam Abacha, widow of late military ruler Sani Abacha, has denied long-standing allegations that her husband looted Nigeria’s treasury, claiming instead that he saved money for the country which “vanished” after his death.
“Who is the witness of the monies that were being stashed?” she asked during an interview with TVC. “Did you see the signature or the evidence of any monies stashed abroad?”
She criticised the media’s role in shaping public perception: “You are here to help the country. You are not here to bastardise people.”
Responding to records of recovered Abacha loot, she said, “Because Nigerians are fools, they listen to everything.”
Since 1998, over $3.6 billion allegedly looted under Abacha’s regime has been recovered by various governments.
Maryam also denied her husband had any role in the annulment of the June 12, 1993 election.
“If it was him, that means he was very powerful… even more powerful than the president,” she said.