June 12 Honours: Knocks On Bayo Onanuga & Co, Alex Ibru (2)

By Femi Kusa

johnolufemikusa@gmail.com

As for Mr. Alex Ibru, considered by some as a misfit on the June 12, 2025 Democracy Honours Roll, I choose to take a broad-minded view. I doubt if some of our esteemed colleagues—such as Dr. Edwin Madunagu, Mr. Sully Abu (both Editorial Board members), and Dr. Olatunji Dare, Chairman of the Editorial Board—would share my view.

The Editorial pages—those central pages of a newspaper—are sacred spaces where the institution’s opinions, letters to the editor, columns by board members, and guest contributions are published.

A day before General Sani Abacha toppled Chief Ernest Shonekan’s Interim National Government—installed by General Ibrahim Babangida—Mr. Ibru summoned four of us to his office: Lade Bonuola (Managing Director), myself, Femi Kusa (Director of Publications/Editor-in-Chief), Dr. Olatunji Dare, and Andy Akporugo, his cousin and consultant. Mr. Ibru had intelligence that Abacha would seize power the following day. He instructed us to craft a strongly worded editorial advising against such a coup.

The operation was top secret. Dr. Dare wrote the editorial, Lade Bonuola approved it, and Dare submitted a dummy version to the printers to avoid suspicion. Late at night, he replaced it with the real version. We risked our lives publishing that editorial. Ironically, as Nigerians read our courageous editorial the next day, Mr. Alex Ibru was being sworn in as Abacha’s Minister of Internal Affairs.

The shock was palpable when Mr. Ibru appeared at the next Editorial Board meeting to explain himself. I advised him to resign as Chairman of The Guardian to avoid creating the impression that the paper was in bed with the junta. A humble man, he agreed. His elder brother, Goddie Ibru, Chairman of Ikeja Hotels and Sheraton Hotels, took over.

I suspected General Aliyu Gusau, then National Security Adviser and a friend to both Abacha and Shonekan, had recruited Mr. Ibru into Abacha’s government. My links with Gusau dated back to the time The Guardian stood alone in refusing to publish the false news of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe’s death. Gusau respected our commitment to factual journalism and shared valuable intelligence with me, including Nigeria’s clandestine operations in Libya and dealings with Mobutu Sese Seko.

Back to Abacha and Alex Ibru—perhaps Abacha thought having Ibru in his cabinet would neutralize The Guardian’s opposition. Mr. Ibru twice tried to resign, but Lade Bonuola warned him that resigning from Abacha’s cabinet wasn’t an option. The breaking point came during the Great Ogboru case, when Ogboru, accused of plotting a coup, was acquitted. As Minister of Internal Affairs, Mr. Ibru had to release him but sought advice from the courageous Attorney General, Dr. Olu Onagoruwa, who insisted he obey the court’s order. Ogboru was freed, angering Abacha. Later, an assassin killed Onagoruwa’s son, mistaking him for his father—a tragedy from which Onagoruwa never recovered.

There were also whispers that after acquiring Eko Hotels and failing to buy Epe Plywood Industries, Abacha eyed the Federal Palace Hotel, apparently unaware that Alex Ibru had IFC backing for it. I recall Chief Nathaniel Idowu escaping assassination when tipped off about an impending attack—he jumped his fence and fled abroad, never recovering fully.

By the time Abacha ordered a hit on Alex Ibru, relations had turned sour. Ibru argued moderates like himself, Lateef Jakande, Ebenezer Babatope, and Onagoruwa were in Abacha’s cabinet to “humanize” the dictator and secure Abiola’s release. He even invited me to weekend strategy meetings in Abuja. I refused. Once bitten, twice shy.

When I refused to publish their propaganda, they turned to Kingsley Osadolor of The Guardian on Sunday. Kingsley submitted a controversial report without my approval, a professional lapse that cost The Guardian dearly.

I knew Ibru’s style well: if you followed his orders and things went wrong, you’d be blamed for not exercising professional judgment. If you resisted and were proven right, you’d be told “You should have known better.” I experienced this dynamic firsthand—like when I published the scoop that Babangida would approve only two political parties. The story humiliated Babangida and catapulted The Guardian’s reputation.

When the contentious Osadolor story ran with the ill-fated headline “INSIDE ASO ROCK” alongside a photo of two cockfighting cockerels, it was game over. That morning, I returned from church only to find The Guardian shut down by the military. Kingsley had vanished. My home was under surveillance. I had to flee through backstreets, eventually hiding under the protection of my school father, Dr. Ayo Ojo.

ALEX IBRU AND THE CLOSURE OF THE GUARDIAN

Did Alex Ibru deserve a place on the Democracy Honours Roll? If his presence in Abacha’s cabinet helped save Great Ogboru and he worked behind the scenes to free Abiola, there’s a case to be made. But critics argued that The Guardian compromised the democratic struggle by “lying prostrate before Abacha.” Editors at Punch, also shuttered, refused to beg for reinstatement.

The closure of The Guardian fractured relations between Alex Ibru and his editorial team. Ibru accused Yoruba editors like Lade Bonuola, myself, and Dr. Dare of being too NADECO-friendly, potentially jeopardizing Ibru’s business interests. He pressured us to apologize to Abacha. Bonuola and I rejected this outright. Kingsley Osadolor and Emeka Izeze supported the apology campaign, while Dare resigned and relocated to the U.S. Abu and Madunagu also resigned in protest.

At an executive board meeting, Ibru pressured Bonuola to resign. He turned to me to take over as Managing Director. I declined flatly. I reminded him I never begged for the editorship. My first year as editor was the first year The Guardian turned a profit.

Ibru’s resentment stemmed from believing we owed him loyalty for our positions. What he didn’t understand was that some of us were driven by principles that wouldn’t permit us to kneel before darkness or serve it.

TO BE CONTINUED… NEXT WEEK: THE BATTLE FOR THE SOUL OF THE GUARDIAN BEFORE ABACHA.

FEMI KUSA was at various times Editor; Director of Publication/ Editor-in-Chief of THE GUARDIAN NEWSPAPER; Editorial Director/ Editor-in-Chief of THE COMET NEWSPAPER. Currently, he keeps a Thursday Column on Alternative Medicine in the NATION NEWSPAPER.

Some of his health columns may be found on www.olufemikusa.com and in MIDIUM a digital platform for writers. He is active also on Facebook @ John OLUFEMI KUSA.