Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Chief Olu Falae, has made a startling claim that he won the 1999 presidential election, insisting that the military imposed former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Nigerians.
Speaking during an interview with Arise Television as Nigeria commemorated June 12 Democracy Day, Falae alleged that he secured victory with a margin of 1.5 million votes over his opponent.
According to Falae, the late Ambassador Antonio Oladeinde Fernandez confirmed these results to him after reportedly seeing them in the possession of American officials.
Military's Preference for a General
The former SGF explained that the military establishment deliberately installed Obasanjo because of his background as a retired Army general. Falae suggested that the military was uncomfortable with transferring power to a "thoroughbred civilian" and needed someone who would shield them from scrutiny.
"I have no doubt in my mind, and most Nigerians have no doubt whatsoever, that it was I that they voted for," Falae stated emphatically during the interview.
He further asserted his readiness to govern at the time, saying: "I was ready to govern. I had spent my life in public and private service without blemish. I was better prepared."
The 1999 presidential election marked Nigeria's transition from military rule to democracy after years of military dictatorship. Obasanjo, who had previously ruled as a military head of state from 1976 to 1979, emerged as the winner of that election and went on to serve two terms as a civilian president until 2007.
Falae's claims add to the ongoing discourse about Nigeria's democratic journey since the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, widely believed to have been won by the late Chief MKO Abiola.
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