The horrifying tale of Nigerian assassinations in the 20th century may not entirely register with today’s youth, who may not fully appreciate the terrifying nature of Nigeria under military control and interventions. Throughout the 20th century, Nigeria had the greatest rate of high-profile assassinations in West African history. Numerous individuals were assassinated, including Dele Giwa, Alfred Rewane, Kudirat Abiola, Babatunde Ashafa, Admiral Olu Omotoyinwa, Dipo Dina, Irene Obodo, Sunday Ugwu, and many more. Muftau Adegoke Babatunde Elegbede (13 August 1939 –19 June 1994) served as the Military Governor of Cross River State from July 1975 to October 1978 as well as the Chief of Nigeria’s Defense Intelligence Agency from July 1986 to January 1990.
Elegbede, a Navy Captain, served as the Military Governor of Cross River State from July 28, 1978, until September 30, 1979, when he deferred to Clement Isong, the elected civilian governor, in the early days of the Nigerian Second Republic. The Maritime Academy of Nigeria was founded at Oron (now in Akwa Ibom State) during his administration.
Elegbede served as Chairman of the Kaduna Zone military tribunal during the military regime of General Muhammadu Buhari, which replaced the Second Republic following a coup on December 31, 1983. The tribunal’s purpose was to try public officers from the previous civilian regime who had been accused of embezzling public funds.
Following his appointment as director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, he served as General Ibrahim Babangida’s chief of administration at Defense Headquarters. Commodore Elegbede served as the Flag Officer Commanding of the Sea Training Command in September of 1985. From 1983 till 1993, he was a part of Babangida’s Armed Forces Ruling Council.
Elegbede was shot about 70 times by automatic rifle rounds when he was killed by unidentified assailants on June 19, 1994, along the Gbagada/Owonshoki expressway in Lagos. Three of the seven alleged thieves were formally charged in July 2001. Nevertheless, no one had been found guilty of the crime as of September 2009.
Was it possible that he was assassinated because he was in possession of sensitive information regarding some high-ranking military officers?