A former Senate President, Adolphus Wabara, in an interview released on Monday on the YouTube series, Untold Stories with Adesuwa, reiterated his previous claims of rejecting a ₦250 million bribe intended to secure his support for the controversial third-term agenda of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
During the interview, Wabara emphatically confirmed the bribe offer, stating, “That’s very correct,” when asked about the authenticity of his claims.
He recalled the political atmosphere at the time, noting disbelief at rumours that senators were being offered ₦50 million each to back the agenda.
Wabara’s rejection of the bribe was part of broader resistance within the Senate against extending Obasanjo’s tenure beyond the constitutionally allowed terms.
He underscored the gravity of the situation by suggesting that accepting the bribe could have led to a prolonged dictatorship in Nigeria.
“Without people like us, there wouldn’t be democracy now,” Wabara asserted, implying that figures like former President Muhammadu Buhari and incumbent President Bola Tinubu might never have risen to prominence if the third-term bid had succeeded.
Addressing misconceptions about his departure from office, Wabara clarified, “First of all, I was not removed by Obasanjo, I resigned,” countering the interviewer’s suggestion about potential pressures leading to his resignation.
Wabara also touched on the lingering ethnic tensions affecting the Igbo people, stemming from historical grievances and misunderstandings related to the Biafra War.
He lamented, “We have not been forgiven for what we did not cause, the Biafra War. It wasn’t our fault, but the propaganda is that the Igbos can not be trusted.”
