Sani Abacha (; (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) was a
Nigerian military dictator and statesman who ruled
Nigeria
Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
with an iron fist as military
head of state
A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...
from 1993 following a
palace coup d'état until his death in 1998.
Abacha's seizure of power was the
last successful coup d'état in
Nigerian military history. He wielded power with an unyielding attitude and
his rule heralded an unprecedented total disregard for human rights with several political assassinations and summary executions of dissidents and political opponents in Nigeria. His rule drew disrepute to the country with Nigeria becoming a
pariah state in international relations particularly with regards to the execution of environmental activist
Ken Saro-Wiwa
Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa (10 October 1941 – 10 November 1995) was a Nigerians, Nigerian writer, teacher, television producer, and social rights activist. Saro-Wiwa was a member of the Ogoni people, an ethnic minority in Nigeria whose homeland ...
.
Sani Abacha was considered one of the twentieth century's most corrupt dictators and as a
kleptocrat for the alleged embezzlement of US$2–5 billion. Abacha, and his family, allegedly hid most of the loot abroad in Switzerland, as well as in other jurisdictions including Liechtenstein, the United Kingdom and the United States. Abacha's death on 8 June 1998 brought about the
Nigerian Fourth Republic a year later and he was succeeded as Nigeria's head of state by General
Abdulsalami Abubakar.
Early life
Abacha was born and brought up in
Kano to a
Kanuri family originally from present-day
Borno State. He attended the
Nigerian Military Training College in
Kaduna, and was
commissioned in 1963 after he had attended the
Mons Officer Cadet School in
Aldershot
Aldershot ( ) is a town in the Rushmoor district, Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme north-east corner of the county, south-west of London. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Farnborough/Aldershot built-up are ...
, England.
Military career
Abacha was definitely involved in all the
military coups in Nigeria since July 1966 during his military career. In 1966, when he was still a second
lieutenant
A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...
with the 3rd Battalion in
Kaduna, he took part in the
July 1966 Nigerian counter-coup from the conceptual stage.
He could well have been a participant in the
Lagos
Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...
or
Abeokuta phases of the
coup the previous January as well. In 1969, he fought during the
Nigerian Civil War
The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Biafran War, Nigeria-Biafra War, or Biafra War, was fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a Secession, secessionist state which had declared its independen ...
as a platoon and battalion commander. He later became commander of the 2nd Infantry Division in 1975. In 1983, Abacha was general officer commanding of the
2nd Mechanised Division, and was appointed a member of the
Supreme Military Council.
In the same year, Abacha played a prominent role in the
1983 Nigerian coup d'état which brought General
Muhammadu Buhari to power; and the
1985 Nigerian coup d'état which removed Buhari and brought General Ibrahim Babangida to power. When General
Ibrahim Babangida was named
President and
Commander-in-Chief of the
Armed Forces
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a ...
of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria in 1985, Abacha was named
Chief of Army Staff. He was later appointed Minister of Defence in 1990.
Abacha served as
Chief of Army Staff from 1985 to 1990, as
Chief of Defence Staff from 1990 to 1993, and as
Minister of Defence
A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...
. Abacha is noted for having been the first
Nigerian Army officer to attain the rank of
general
A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry.
In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...
without skipping a single rank.
Seizure of power
Abacha was the defence minister and most senior official within the military hierarchy during the
crisis of the Third Republic. He orchestrated the
coup d'état of 1993 which overthrew the
Interim National Government of
Ernest Shonekan. In his nationwide broadcast, Abacha portrayed the overthrow as an act of stability brought about through the socio-political uncertainties caused by the
1993 presidential election.
Head of state
Abacha ruled as Head of State and Commander-in-Chief of the
Armed Forces
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a ...
of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria from 1993 to 1998. In September 1994, he issued a decree that placed his government above the jurisdiction of the courts effectively giving him absolute power. Another decree gave him the right to detain anyone for up to three months without trial. He further abrogated Decree 691 of 1993.
Regime maintenance
Abacha assembled a personal security force of 3,000 men trained in
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...
. Abacha's chief security officer
Hamza al-Mustapha had an iron grip on the apparatus of military security. The
Nigeria Police Force underwent a large-scale retraining. The state cracked down ruthlessly on criminals and dissidents, the
National Democratic Coalition was charged with responsibility for a number of bombings across the country, and several of its members were arrested. When
Moshood Abiola proclaimed himself president, he was jailed for
treason
Treason is the crime of attacking a state (polity), state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to Coup d'état, overthrow its government, spy ...
and subsequently died in custody. Also, former military ruler
Olusegun Obasanjo was jailed for treason and accused of plotting a coup together with General
Oladipo Diya. In 1997, General
Shehu Yar'Adua who was also jailed died in custody. Abacha's regime was accused of
human rights
Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...
abuses, especially after the hanging of
Ogoni activist
Ken Saro-Wiwa
Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa (10 October 1941 – 10 November 1995) was a Nigerians, Nigerian writer, teacher, television producer, and social rights activist. Saro-Wiwa was a member of the Ogoni people, an ethnic minority in Nigeria whose homeland ...
(only one of several executions of Ogoni activists opposed to the exploitation of
Nigerian resources by the
multinational petroleum
Petroleum, also known as crude oil or simply oil, is a naturally occurring, yellowish-black liquid chemical mixture found in geological formations, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons. The term ''petroleum'' refers both to naturally occurring un ...
company,
Royal Dutch Shell), whose death later led to the eviction of Nigeria from the Commonwealth Nations.
Wole Soyinka was charged in absentia with treason.
Abacha's regime suffered opposition externally by pro-democracy activists.
National economy
Abacha's administration oversaw an increase in the country's foreign exchange reserves from $494 million in 1993 to $9.6 billion by the middle of 1997, and reduced the
external debt
A country's gross external debt (or foreign debt) is the liabilities that are owed to nonresidents by residents. The debtors can be government, governments, corporation, corporations or citizens. External debt may be denominated in domestic or f ...
of Nigeria from $36 billion in 1993 to $27 billion by 1997.
Abacha also constructed between 25 and 100 km of urban road in major cities such as
Kano,
Gusau,
Benin
Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...
,
Funtua,
Zaria,
Enugu,
Kaduna, Aba,
Lagos
Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...
,
Lokoja and
Port Harcourt. Abacha brought the privatisation programs of the Ibrahim Babangida administration to a halt, reduced an inflation rate of 54% inherited from
Ernest Shonekan to 8.5% between 1993 and 1998, all while the nation's primary commodity, oil was at an average of $15 per barrel.
GDP growth, despite being estimated to be higher than the 2.2% growth in 1995, was largely limited to the
petroleum sector.
Embezzlement of state funds
The unprecedented economic achievements coincided with the rapid expansion of
embezzlement hitherto unseen in the history of
corruption in Nigeria in the alleged saga known as "Abacha loot". Abacha's national security adviser, Alhaji
Ismaila Gwarzo, was accused by the government of President
Olusegun Obasanjo to have played a central role in the looting and transfer of money to
overseas accounts. Abacha's son,
Mohammed Abacha and best friend Alhaji Mohammed M. Sada were also involved. A preliminary report published by the
Abdulsalam Abubakar transitional government in November 1998 described the process. The report mentioned that Sani Abacha told Ismaila Gwarzo to provide fake
national security
National security, or national defence (national defense in American English), is the security and Defence (military), defence of a sovereign state, including its Citizenship, citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of ...
funding requests, which Abacha approved. The funds were usually sent in cash or
traveller's cheques by the
Central Bank of Nigeria to Gwarzo, who took them to Abacha's house. Mohammed Sada then arranged to launder the money to
offshore accounts. An estimated $1.4 billion in cash was delivered in this way.
In 2004, a list of the ten most self-enriching leaders in the previous two decades was released; in order of amount allegedly stolen, the fourth-ranked of these leaders was Abacha and his family who are alleged to have embezzled between $1 billion – $5 billion. In 2002, rumours circulated that Abacha's family purportedly agreed to return $1.2 billion. Sources in the Obasanjo administration disclosed that the whole Abacha loot was politicised by the administration for his re-election bid. On 7 August 2014, the
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a United States federal executive departments, federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of Law of the Unite ...
announced the forfeiture of US$480 million, the largest in its history, to the Nigerian government.
Jersey
Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...
discovered more than $267 million in funds that were allegedly laundered through the U.S. banking system and deposited in a Jersey account (£210m in British pounds). In 2019, more than 20 years after his death the U.S. Justice Department, Jersey courts and the government of Nigeria completed a
civil asset forfeiture against the funds and they will be divided between those countries.
National politics
Abacha oversaw the re-organisation of Nigeria into six
geopolitical zones, in order to reflect cultural, economic, and political realities of the regions:
*
North Central:
Benue State
Benue is a State in the North Central Nigeria, North Central region of Nigeria. It is popularly referred to as part of the Middle belt. It has an estimated population of about 4,253,641 in List of Nigerian states by population, the 2006 census. ...
,
Kogi State,
Kwara State,
Nasarawa State,
Niger State
Niger State is a state in the North Central (Nigeria), North Central region of Nigeria, bordered to the east by Kaduna State and the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria), Federal Capital Territory, to the north by Kebbi State and Zamfara State, ...
,
Plateau State and
Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria.
*
North East:
Adamawa State,
Bauchi State,
Borno State,
Gombe State,
Taraba State
Taraba is a States of Nigeria, state in north-eastern Nigeria, named after the Taraba River, which traverses the southern part of the state. It is known as "Nature's Gift to the Nation". Its capital is Jalingo. The state's main Demographics ...
and
Yobe State.
*
North West:
Jigawa State,
Kaduna State
Kaduna (, جىِهَر كَدُنا; مدينة كدونا; , ; ) is a States of Nigeria, state in the northwest geopolitical zone of Nigeria. The state capital is its namesake, the city of Kaduna (city), Kaduna, which was the List of Nigerian ...
,
Kano State
Kano (Hausa language, Hausa: ) is one of the 36 States of Nigeria, states of Nigeria, located in the Northern Region, Nigeria, northern region of the country. According to the national census done in 2006, Kano State is the List of Nigerian st ...
,
Katsina State,
Kebbi State,
Sokoto State and
Zamfara State.
*
South East:
Abia State,
Anambra State,
Ebonyi State
Ebonyi () is a States of Nigeria, state in the South East (Nigeria), South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered to the north and northeast by Benue State, Enugu State to the west, Cross River State to the east and southeast, and Abia Stat ...
,
Enugu State and
Imo State.
*
South South:
Akwa Ibom State
Akwa Ibom is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South, South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. It borders Cross River State to the east, Rivers State and Abia State to the west and north-west, and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. The state ...
,
Bayelsa State
Bayelsa is a state in the South South region of Nigeria, located in the core of the Niger Delta. Bayelsa State was created in 1996 and was carved out from Rivers State, making it one of the newest states in the federation. The capital, Yenag ...
,
Cross River State,
Delta State
Delta is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South (Nigeria), South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named after the Niger Delta—a large part of which is in the state—the state was formed from the former Bendel State, on 27 August 1 ...
,
Edo State
Edo State, Edo, officially known as Edo State, is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South, South-South Geopolitical zones of Nigeria, geopolitical zone of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. As of 2024, the state was ranked as the List of Ni ...
and
Rivers State.
*
South West:
Ekiti State,
Lagos State
Lagos State (, ) is a States of Nigeria, state in South West, Nigeria. Of the 36 States of Nigeria, Nigerian states, Lagos is the second List of Nigerian states by population, most populous state but the List of Nigerian states by area, smallest ...
,
Ogun State
Ogun State is a state in southwestern Nigeria. It is bordered to the south by Lagos State and the Bight of Benin, to the east by Ondo State, and to the north by Oyo and Osun states while its western border forms part of the national borde ...
,
Ondo State
Ondo () is a States of Nigeria, state in Points of the compass, southwestern Nigeria. It was created on 3 February 1976 from the former Western State (Nigeria), Western State. Ondo borders Ekiti State to the north, Kogi State to the northeast fo ...
,
Osun State and
Oyo State
Oyo is a States of Nigeria, state in South West (Nigeria), southwestern Nigeria. Its capital is Ibadan, the List of Nigerian cities by population, third most populous city in the country and formerly the second most populous city in Africa. Oyo ...
.
*
*
This was achieved after adding six states to the already existing 30 to make up the present 36 states in the country.
Abacha held a constitutional conference between 1993 and 1995. Early in 1998, Abacha announced that elections would be held on 1 August, with a view toward handing power to a civilian government on 1 October. It later became apparent that Abacha had no intention of relinquishing power. By April 1998, Abacha had coerced the country's five political parties into endorsing him as the sole presidential candidate.
Foreign policy
In 1995, following the execution of
Ken Saro-Wiwa
Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa (10 October 1941 – 10 November 1995) was a Nigerians, Nigerian writer, teacher, television producer, and social rights activist. Saro-Wiwa was a member of the Ogoni people, an ethnic minority in Nigeria whose homeland ...
, Nigeria was suspended from the
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, often referred to as the British Commonwealth or simply the Commonwealth, is an International organization, international association of member states of the Commonwealth of Nations, 56 member states, the vast majo ...
.
While hosting
Nelson Mandela, Abacha admitted he was advised against interfering with Saro-Wiwa's trial—but made assurances that he would use his rank in government to commute the sentence if death sentence was pronounced. Justice Ibrahim Auta was the judge presiding over the proceedings and sentenced Saro-Wiwa to
death by hanging. Abacha did not commute the sentence.
In 1997,
Muammar Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi (20 October 2011) was a Libyan military officer, revolutionary, politician and political theorist who ruled Libya from 1969 until Killing of Muammar Gaddafi, his assassination by Libyan Anti-Gaddafi ...
's West African Tour to Sani Abacha to mark the new Islamic year directly infringed United Nations Sanctions on Libya, yet he was greeted by thousands of Abacha's supporters who came out to demonstrate their loyalty in
Kano. The Libyan leader sought to strengthen relations with the country, as a way to strengthen his agenda of
Pan-Africanism
Pan-Africanism is a nationalist movement that aims to encourage and strengthen bonds of solidarity between all Indigenous peoples of Africa, indigenous peoples and diasporas of African ancestry. Based on a common goal dating back to the Atla ...
.
Abacha intervened in the
Liberian Civil War. Through the
Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group, Abacha sent troops to
Liberia
Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast–Lib ...
to fight against the rising insurgency in the country. The Civil War, which began in 1989, saw an influx of
Nigerian
Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...
troops from 1990 when Abacha was defence minister.
Despite being repeatedly condemned by the
US State Department, Abacha did have a few ties to American politicians. In 1997, Senator
James Inhofe (
R-
Oklahoma
Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...
) travelled to Nigeria to meet with Abacha as a representative of the "
Family
Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
", a group of
evangelical Christian politicians and civic leaders. Abacha and the Family had a business and political relationship from that point until his death. Abacha also developed ties with other American political figures such as Senator
Carol Moseley Braun (D-Illinois) Rev.
Jesse Jackson and Minister
Louis Farrakhan. Several African American political leaders visited Nigeria during his reign and Farrakhan supported his administration.
Personal life and death

Abacha was married to
Maryam Abacha and had seven sons and three daughters. As of 2018, he had thirty-three grandchildren.
The scars on his face were
tribal markings.
On Monday 8 June 1998, Abacha died in the
Aso Rock Presidential Villa in
Abuja
Abuja (; , ) is the capital city of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, strategically situated at the geographic midpoint of the country within the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria), Federal Capital Territory (FCT). As the seat of the Federal G ...
. He was buried on the same day according to
Muslim tradition and without an
autopsy, fuelling speculation that he may have been assassinated.
The government identified the cause of death as a sudden
heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
. It is believed by foreign diplomats, including United States intelligence analysts, that he may have been poisoned while in the company of prostitutes. His
chief security officer, Hamza al-Mustapha, believed he was poisoned by Israeli operatives in the company of
Yasser Arafat
Yasser Arafat (4 or 24 August 1929 – 11 November 2004), also popularly known by his Kunya (Arabic), kunya Abu Ammar, was a Palestinian political leader. He was chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) from 1969 to 2004, Presid ...
. At the time of his death, he was allegedly about to transfer power to a civilian government in October 1998, implemented in October 1995. After Abacha's death, General
Abdulsalami Abubakar became head of state, whose short tenure ushered in the
Fourth Nigerian Republic.
Dates of rank
See also
*
List of unsolved deaths
References
External links
*
Abacha dies at 54 ''
BBC News
BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...
'', 8 June 1998
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abacha, Sani
1943 births
1998 deaths
20th-century Nigerian politicians
Sani
Chiefs of Army Staff (Nigeria)
Heads of state of Nigeria
Graduates of the Mons Officer Cadet School
Kanuri people
Leaders who took power by coup
Nigerian generals
Nigerian Muslims
Participants in the 1966 Nigerian counter-coup
Participants in the 1983 Nigerian military coup
Participants in the August 1985 Nigerian military coup
People from Kano
Rumfa College alumni
Unsolved deaths in Nigeria
Defence ministers of Nigeria
Chiefs of Defence Staff (Nigeria)