Buba Marwa, chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and former military governor of Lagos State, has revealed that military leaders attempted to prevent Bola Tinubu from becoming governor due to his pro-democracy activism.
Speaking in Abuja on Saturday during the public presentation of Buni Boy, a book by the late Niyi Ayoola-Daniels, Marwa said the military hierarchy opposed Tinubu because of his involvement with the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) during the struggle for democracy.
He recalled that Lagos residents, while opposing military rule, “warmly embraced” his leadership and supported his administration.
READ ALSO: Opposition faults Tinubu’s ambassadorial nominees, APC defends list
Marwa, a retired brigadier general, noted that the trust Lagosians placed in him inspired his commitment to overseeing a transparent and credible democratic election.
“Even though the head of state then, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, did not interfere in my conduct of the governorship election, the military hierarchy did,” Marwa said.
“After seeing the then-Senator Bola Tinubu’s strong campaign and popularity, the military hierarchy instructed me to prevent him from becoming governor because of his pro-democracy activism in NADECO against the military government then.
“But I chose to conduct a free and fair election that produced the most popular candidate as governor of Lagos State. The rest today is history.”
Marwa said his 30-year military career further solidified his belief in the country’s unity, adding that the army’s ethos was built around one Nigeria.
“In the army, intermarriage and close fellowship pushed us to look past ethnic lines and stand together as one,” he said.
“Wherever I stand in this country, whether among the Ogoni, the Bachama, the Igbo or the Idoma, anywhere at all, I am at home.”
