IBB Denies Endorsing Military Rule, Disowns Parody X Account

IBB Denies Endorsing Military Rule, Disowns Parody X Account

Former Military President General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) has disavowed statements attributed to him on X (formerly Twitter), claiming Nigeria thrived under military rule and suffered under democracy.

In a statement from the IBB Media Office, signed by Alhaji Mahmoud Abdullahi, IBB clarified that the comments were posted by a parody account, @General_Ibbro, and do not represent his views.

The statement reads, “Our attention has been drawn to a post on a parody account on X, formerly known as Twitter, which carries the handle, @General_Ibbro, in which former President Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, GCFR, was supposed to have endorsed the virtues of military rule over democratic governance.

“This dubious account carries our principal’s picture and name, and the coat of arms of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for added effect, but it does not belong to him, nor does the former President sanction any post appearing there.

“In the past, and more famously during the presidential elections last year, it posted a blatant falsehood that the former President had endorsed a particular presidential candidate and his party, thereby causing public confusion and some embarrassment to the elder statesman.

“We want to state, unequivocally, that neither the Twitter or X account, which is essentially a parody or pretend account, nor the statement made therein, ever belonged to the retired General.

“General Babangida truly believes that the era of military intervention in Nigeria’s politics is long gone and he has said how proud he is that the Nigerian military has stood firmly behind multiple democratic governments in this country since 1999, thus giving us the longest run of civilian administration since independence.

“The user of this unfortunate parody account, which we gather was traditionally supposed to be an account that imitates or at least mirrors the sentiments of the original Twitter or X account that it copies, has serially chosen to use the account to undermine democracy and spread stories capable of causing animosity.”