Former Cross River State Governor, Donald Duke, has revealed that rumours of a possible military coup in Nigeria ahead of the 2003 presidential election reached the highest levels of the South African government.
Duke, who governed Cross River State from 1999 to 2007, disclosed the account in the soon-to-be-released book, How to Win Elections in Nigeria, authored by Seun Oloketuyi.
Recalling the intense political crisis surrounding former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s bid for a second term, Duke described the growing tension between Obasanjo and his then-deputy, Atiku Abubakar, as a situation that had drawn international concern.
According to Duke, the then-governor of Niger State, Abdulkadir Kure, received a call from South Africa’s High Commissioner to Nigeria, Bangumzi Sifingo, informing him that President Thabo Mbeki wanted to speak with him urgently.
When Mbeki eventually called, he reportedly asked Kure whether it was true that Nigeria could face a military coup if Obasanjo sought and won a second term.
Surprised by the question, Kure reportedly asked Mbeki where the information had come from. Although the South African president disclosed the source, Duke did not reveal it in his account.
Concerned about the seriousness of the matter, Kure reportedly went directly to the Presidential Villa in Abuja to brief Obasanjo.
Duke said the fact that the rumour had reached Mbeki showed the extent to which Nigeria’s political crisis was attracting international attention.
The Obasanjo-Atiku Crisis
The incident came amid a deepening rift between Obasanjo and Atiku.
Duke recalled receiving a late-night call from Obasanjo, who was reportedly frustrated by what he considered a betrayal by his vice president. According to Duke, the tension became so intense that Obasanjo was considering abandoning his second-term bid.
The following morning, Duke travelled to Abuja and met with Atiku, attempting to persuade him against challenging the incumbent president.
To make his point, Duke said he placed a map of Nigeria on Atiku’s desk and asked him to identify a realistic electoral path to defeating a sitting president with the full machinery of the federal government behind him.
Obasanjo eventually contested the 2003 presidential election and secured a second term, but his political relationship with Atiku remained deeply fractured.
