Fasehun
Dr. Frederick Fasehun is the founder of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) and chairman of the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN). Fasehun recently clocked 80. In this interview with JULIANA FRANCIS, the human rights activist and hotelier reminisces about his struggles with the military. While revealing how he uses dead bodies as pillows, Fasehun further speaks on myriad of issues. He also takes a swipe at President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration. Excerpts;
You’ll soon be marking your 80thbirthday…
Yes!
When?
On 21st of September this year.
Looking back now, how long have you been in human rights activism, fighting for actualisation of O.P.C, developmental government and others?
I became well aware of rights at about the age of 35 and I have been on it since then. In other words, for over 45 years now.
What’s the correlation between activism, politics, hotelier and medicine?
This hotel was meant for a hospital and we started building. And just as we laid the foundation, Idiagbon and Buhari came to power. At that time, doctors were on strike.
Even back then?
Yes, in the teaching hospitals. Government back then threatened to nationalise all health institutions. If we build hospital and government comes in to nationalise it, of what use would it be to the people and owners of such hospitals?
What’s the implication of nationlising it?
It means government will take over the building.
Take over your own building?
Yes! Military government didn’t appreciate the law and they don’t have respect for the law; especially that particular military government. I decided then to change the whole concept from being a hospital to a hotel. That was how I came into the hotel business. It was originally meant for a hospital. By the time we had gone far with the building, the military reversed their decision. It was too late to convert the building to a hospital.
You seem to detest military rule. Amongst all the military leaders, which one do you detested most?
I don’t like all the military government. The military have their own constitutional responsibility, well defined by the constitution for protection against external aggression; that’s the function of the military. But instead of protecting the people against external aggression, they turned their aggression on the people. They denied us rights, privileges and rode roughshod over the people. I’ve always thought they shouldn’t have done that. There are places where the military government is liberal. Military governments in Ghana were liberal, see what Ghana has become.
The military government in Nigeria started pummeling the people! They pummeled the people for close to three decades and look at how Nigeria is! We thought they were going to instill discipline in us, but they themselves were not disciplined. What you don’t have, you cannot give. They weren’t disciplined, so they couldn’t instill discipline in Nigerians. That’s why Nigerians are what we are; that’s talking about corruption. Was there a source of corruption? A source to corruption? Let’s talk about lawlessness…who founded lawlessness in Nigeria? Let’s talk about impunity, who founded impunity? If you’re lawless, you’ll do things with impurity. You do not obey the constitution of the land; of course you will cause crisis and chaos. That’s what we have in this country! That’s why we’re now battling with corruption; that’s why we’re battling with insecurity of lives and property.
Are you saying that the military entrenched corruption?
Of course! Every country has its own level of corruption, but Nigeria has the highest level.
Looking back, what do you think is your greatest achievement up to date since your struggles?
We thank God that we have a seeming democracy. It’s not true democracy yet, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. If a former military administrator now accepts that he is a civilian and he would be ready to adopt democracy as the end of the military government, I think that those of us who struggled for democracy, we didn’t get democracy as it were, but we thank God that the people have been converted to think of democracy.
In those days, you’ll see the military everywhere and in every street. If they were not booting you, they were flogging you. If they were not flogging you, they would be breaking your windscreen. They thought they were in government, but they were introducing lawlessness into the country! Our own little contribution is that even our military, have now turned round, to recognise and appreciate our rights; that we’re fellow human beings. That we should be given our constitutional rights.
I hope and pray that in the military academies, they should introduce the teaching of the constitution. The military man will be conversant with the constitution of the land and will know how far he can go. I think that’s the only contribution we have made. We have not achieved true democracy, so we cannot claim to have succeeded.
But it’s something?
Yes, it’s something!
What’s your saddest moment in the struggle?
My saddest moment in the struggle? Hum! There are many. But the saddest was my 62nd birthday. It was when many very important people (VIP) gathered to celebrate me. I was in prison, but many VIPs gathered together to celebrate me. The military went there with the police, disrupted and disorganised my party. Among those who were at that party, was Walter Carrington, the American Ambassador to Nigeria!
I wasn’t sad because they disrupted the reception of my party, but the incident gave Nigeria a very bad name. The American Ambassador is the most highly recognised ambassador in the world, and here we had Walter Carrington, the Ambassador of the United States. A very popular person even in the United States being rough handled in Nigeria. We were lucky that the Americans didn’t take it the way that they should have taken it; otherwise, it was enough to break diplomatic relation of Nigeria. They shouldn’t have rough handled Walter Carrington.
You said you were in prison, how many times have you been to prison?
11 times!
Tell us about your first prison experience?
The first time was at State Criminal Investigations Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba. They detained me for about four weeks, along with Beko Ransome Kuti and Chima Ubani…
The late Chima?
Yes, the late Chima. They detained us for no reason. They said we were ‘meeting.’ It was a meeting of an organization. And they came, arrested and rough handled us. As much as Gani Fawemi tried to secure our freedom, the police didn’t allow it.
But the real one, the longest one was 1996. I just started working in my hospital, and four people, armed to the teeth came in and asked: “Are you Doctor Fasheun?”, and I replied yes!
They said: “You are wanted by our boss,” and I asked, ‘who is your boss,’ they replied, “You’ll find out!” They were armed to the teeth, but I decided to follow them because I didn’t want to create chaos. When they came into the hospital, OPC personnel knew who they were. OPC members assembled and surrounded that area of the street and the building. When the four armed men realized they were in the lion’s den, they became fidgety and they appealed to me, to call my people to order.
I told them they shouldn’t worry. I told them that I’ll follow them, but they shouldn’t attempt to act ‘strong’ or else, the OPC personnel would deal with them. I had to come out and appeal to OPC members. I begged them to go home. I assured them that I would go with the four men, but would be back that same evening. I didn’t comeback until two years later!
You were in prison for two years?
Yes!
Which prison was that?
Oh! They took me to various prisons! I was in Ikoyi prison. No! They took me to the inter-centre.
Who was the president back then?
It was Abacha! They took me to the inter-centre. The inter-centre is built inside the Ikoyi Cemetery. When someone is detained there, the person is detained along with his or her God! They made sure you had no associates in there. And because of the terrible nature of that environment, they wanted to turn my head and make me go crazy! When they had done that to me for six weeks, I had to call the jailers. There was no way one could escape from the inter center cell. No way! It had three gates and no missiles can penetrate any of the gate.
Yet they kept me there and a few weeks after that, I called them and said, ‘look, I’m a medical doctor, dead bodies don’t frighten me! That you come to put off the light at midnight is the same thing as daylight to me. They were only wasting their time. I had slept with a dead body and used it as my pillow before. Thus going beyond this world didn’t and doesn’t bother me. When I refused to go crazy, they moved me from that prison. They moved me to Alagbon. They later moved me from Alagbon Prison to Ikoyi. I was later transferred to Kirikiri Prison and from there to Ilorin. I hope that one of the human rights activists, like Femi Falana, will one day, sit down and write the story of anti-military activism in Nigeria. It’s too late for me to embark on that now.
What were the charges against you? Why were you moved severally?
No reason and no charge! That’s what military government is all about. And if at any time they charge you to court, they would bring up some naughty charge, like ‘anti-government activity.’ There was a time they took me to the headquarters in Abuja. All of a sudden, they came for me at night. They said I should sit on a pile of weapons. They said they found the weapons in my place.
Were they soldiers or police?
They were policemen! The military government and police were always working hands in hands back then. They said they found the pile of weapons in my hospital. They said I should pick one of the weapons, hold and examine it. I said to them, I wasn’t going to leave my finger prints on any of those weapons. Moreover, many of the weapons were rusty and dusty.
They were exhibits?
Yes, they were exhibits guns. People like Gani Fawehinmi, Beko Ransome Kuti, even Femi Falana, had gone through a lot to ensure that Nigeria governs her people the way civilised people govern their citizens.
Were you tortured physically, aside from psychologically?
It depends on what you call physical torture. If you were denied your meal…
You were starved?
Of course! I’ve forgotten the name of the woman. She was a terrible woman in the SSS at that time. On the 25thof December, my family sent me a Christmas cake and food. She came around and specially asked for me. She was told where I was. In prison, you couldn’t be served in any plastic plate or ceramic. They would wrap your meal in old newspapers. She came and saw my Christmas meal in front of me.
You spent Christmas in prison?
Yes, of course! She looked at me and screamed, ‘you’re eating cake?’ She kicked and spattered the cake. I looked at her and wished her Happy Christmas. She looked at me and felt very bad. She did that to me and all I cared to say was Merry Christmas. It made her to feel bad. When people talk about activism in this country and the people who fought for democracy, you wouldn’t know the extent of the torture they went through.
Can you imagine what happened to Anthony Enahoror? If we, as small as we are, can remember, the little sad episodes, of the short time we spent in prisons and detention centres, you can best imagine what happened to others, who truly suffered before us. The Awolowos, The Ziks. But we thank God now. I was talking to a group of West African students, a week ago. I told them that we thank God that some of the African countries have changed, but some of them are getting deeper in mis-governance. I hope that the South African kind of governance and Ghanaian kind of governance will sustain and be introduced in other countries.
You told your jailers that you’ve used corpses as pillows. At where? What happened?
I was a student and I had to go through the period of dissecting corpses. Most of us used to receive lectures in the afternoon and there still would be stables of works to be done. If you didn’t meet up in the afternoon, you would go to the anatomy morgue at night. If you felt sleepy, you just pull the body you’re working on and lay down your head.
Why did you form OPC?
If you consider the struggle for independence in this country, you’ll discover that various people participated, including the Yoruba people. The Yoruba people were in the vanguard of the struggle for democracy. The Awolowos and The Akintolas, The Adelabus. When independence came, the Yoruba people were relegated to the background as if they didn’t participate in the struggle. The most erudite Yoruba politician of his time was Chief Obafemi Awolowo. He contested in the election for the leadership of the country twice and twice he was alleged to have failed. He was denied the dividend of victory. Then came Moshood Kashimawo Abiola (MKO), who was instrumental to the crisis against Awolowo. The powers, during the time of MKO, were very close to Abiola. Abiola shared various things with them. He went for the election and without equivocation, he won that election. But he had a chip on his shoulders. He was a Yoruba person.
You think MKO being a Yoruba man had anything to do with the annulment?
He was denied the dividend of victory. He was arrested from his people, the Yoruba people. He was detained in Abuja and killed! I sat down and asked myself why the Yoruba people are undergoing such political crisis so often. I thought it was possible because they were running the political race on one leg. Nobody runs any race on one leg and wins.
What does that mean?
I’ll tell you. I said to myself, I would develop a second leg of the Yoruba people; which would be a fall back for the Yoruba people. That was why Abacha imprisoned me. I founded the OPC in August 29, 1994 and by December 1996, I was hounded and taken to prison. And till today, what I got for all the trouble they put me through, two years spent in prison, was anti-government activity. It was a nebulous phrase. What were the anti-government activities I was involved in? Nobody cared to define it. OPC was waxing stronger and stronger. It became a threat to the government of the day. The government felt threatened and felt it needed to shoot the animal on the head. That was why I was taken away to prison. By the time I came back from prison, almost two years later, OPC was in shambles. It had become a group of rabble rousers, touts and thugs because nobody was controlling them. There were no rules and regulations. We started as good boys, but by the time I returned from prison, nobody could be regarded as a good boy. I decided to write the rules and regulations of the body.
If there was anybody in the group, that couldn’t surrender to the new rules and regulations, they were free to go. That’s what the media described as factionalisation. It wasn’t a factionalisation. I founded the organization, I didn’t abandon it. Those people went away and founded other groups, calling it different names. I have led the organization for 21 years now and at 80 years now, I’ve decided to give up the leadership.
Is this your faction of OPC living up to your expectations?
Yes! If not, I would have resigned my leadership a long time. They got it from the grapevine that I was quitting the leadership of OPC and four days ago, a delegation came to me, saying I shouldn’t try it. They said they didn’t know who else could do it, the way I had been doing it. To be able to control this number of people, without crisis, even when crisis was brewing is commendable. OPC today, has the least intention for violence.
Do you have an anointed person that would take over?
I’m thinking of taking one out of five. We’re watching the five and studying them. OPC security is bringing in reports. We can only use a group like OPC for the benefit of the people. We don’t want to create another Boko Haram. Why should I encourage violence in a country that had been in violence for years?
How many times have you escaped death?
Several times! During the time of Barrister Sunday Ehindero, when he was the Inspector General of Police, he sent for us and again, it was my birthday. We were arrested and Gani was arrested at that time. They were to transport us to Abuja by plane. When we got to airport; two planes were available for flight.
A Bellview plane and Chanchangi plane. There were nine of us to be transported by the police to Abuja. Bellview plane had only five seats available. While Chanchangi flight had about 11 seats. Bellview said it didn’t have enough seats and we were transferred to the Chanchangi flight. When we landed in Abuja, we were taken straight to the Force Headquarters. I sat in front of the IG and he interrogating me; a senior police officer came into the office and looked at me and said, ‘lucky bastard!’
He called you a lucky bastard?
I looked at Ehindero and told him that I didn’t know who was being called a lucky bastard. The police officer said I was the lucky bastard. He said I was supposed to have been brought to Abuja in a Bellview flight and that he didn’t know why there wasn’t enough seats for us. He said that the plane had just crashed, killing 179. Do you remember the Bellview plane crash?
Yes!
That was the plane I should have been transported in to Abuja. That’s one. I was detained and bailed and I was to attend to an invitation in Abuja and boarded Okada plane while returning. The plane ran into turbulence. It was the greatest fear anybody could have imagined.
The plane would dipped down like it was going to crash and many of us thought that was the end, then it would flew up again. Everyone was quiet. Passengers were praying. I thought that was the end for me. We were in that turbulence for 15 minutes. It arrived Lagos and couldn’t land. The weather was bad. It was in the air for over 30 minutes, hovering over Lagos. When it eventually landed, you should have heard the voices thanking God.
When I was a toddler about three or four years old; I was always sick. My mother felt discouraged. She felt there was no point in investing in a ‘sickler.’ She was travelling from Ondo, to Lagos, via water and I fell ill again two days into the journey. She asked herself why she should arrive Lagos with a dead baby or go back to Ondo with a dead baby. She threw me into the water.
It’s a lie!
Yes, she threw me into the water! Another woman, who was on the boat, asked why my mother threw me into the water for the fishes. The woman jumped into the water and rescued me. Since then, you wouldn’t believe it, I had never been sick! It was as if that undesired action of my mother, served to anoint me and removed all the diseases and sicknesses in me. Now that I’m preparing for my 80th birthday, my mind flashed back to that day and the action of my mother. My mother and I became very close, but each time I looked at her face, I remembered that action. People have been dying at 40 and 50; I keep wondering how I managed to live up till now. I felt God told my mother to throw me into the river, so that he would perform his miracle in my life.
Do you use charms to protect yourself as an OPC leader?
I’ve never used charm in my life! If you give it to me, I wouldn’t take it. I can give money to you if you want to go and do it for yourself, but I wouldn’t ever do it for myself. I don’t believe in it. The efficacy of every charm depends on God. There’s no power on earth, except that given by God and allowed by God. I’ve gone through different crisis and didn’t think I would live up to 50 years. There was a time police came to attack OPC at Agundu. They opened fire and I walked towards them. People screamed that I should go back, but I kept walking towards the police. Suddenly the police turned and ran. None of the bullets touched me. And people thought I had… (Laughs). It wasn’t charms. It was the grace of God.
But your men use charms?
They do. I guess that’s why people thought I was the originator of the use of charms. But I had never used charms in my life before. There’s no point in using charms now. If I start using charms now, to what age would I stop?
Why were you edged out of the national sovereign conference?
Youths are the building blocks of any nation. I thought the best candidates for the confab should have been the youths! Why should I be part of rewriting constitution at the age of 79? The constitution can’t affect me, but my children. So, let the age group of my children, go to the confab. I was invited by five groups and I turned their invitations down. It wasn’t a place for me. Secondly, I knew that if the government changed and somebody who didn’t believe in the conference takes over, they wouldn’t implement the content of the conference. And that’s what’s happening now.
What’s your reaction to the money spent on conference, while the country is so poor?
It would have cost less if youths were allowed to go to that conference. The youths of this nation has been neglected and that’s why Nigeria is not developing good leadership. Why do you educate these youths? This is why the government has failed to provide free education. They don’t want to educate the youths, so that new group of youths wouldn’t run them out of power. We have over 70 million people, yet look at the sort of leadership the country had been subjected to. Look at our economy, level of illiteracy and look at our superstitions. What happened to Ghana when Rawlings took over power?
He killed people! Isn’t that against human rights? Aren’t you a human right activist?
The achievement he made for millions of people couldn’t have been achieved by the few people he killed because they had been in office and weren’t doing anything. Youths are the building blocks of any nation. Don’t cease their opportunities. Let them enjoy their opportunities. Give them free education, good employment and public services. See what Adesina, the President of Africa Development Bank is doing today. Go and check out what he did for Agric ministry.
Why were you so set against the election of Buhari?
I wasn’t against Buhari as a person, but against his background and against what he stood for. We fought the military to a standstill, before they allowed a seeming democracy and now, the military is sneaking in through the back door. I didn’t think the military should be given the opportunity to introduce their own brand of democracy.
Nigeria should create a school for democracy, where those who had been in the military and wanted to be in the government, should be re-oriented towards democratic sentiments. You can see what is happening now. Buhari wants to govern well. He told us he wants to govern well and that two weeks after he comes into power, change! But he had been there for about 100 days. The change we’ve seen is much less than what we expected from his swan song.
All we’ve been getting now is probe! Probe! Probe! The noise about probe has downgraded good government.
I believe the probe and anti-corruption crusade is a good thing.
I believe in anti-corruption crusade and the probe. But the probe must not be selective. It must be across board. If I’m to advise him, I would say, he shouldn’t be selective. He should make the probe 16 years, since democracy started. He should probe all of them!
You mean all past administrations?
Yes! 16 years! Why should you think it is Jonathan alone? That could amount to witch hunting. Much as he means well, the legislature is still in crisis and the Federal Executive Council is yet to be. I believe a bird doesn’t fly with one wing. What he’s doing now is without constitutional authority. It’s like a bird flying with one wing. He’s ruling like a sole administrator.
If you’re calling him a sole administrator, are you hinting at element of military?
Exactly! That what I mean…
Grapevine said Buhari is just being careful. He doesn’t want to pick corrupt persons.
You can carry out good governance in pari passu with probe. You can govern very well and allow those who are going to carry out the probe, to go on. Are doctors going to be involved in the probe? No! It’s the judiciary! Don’t we have enough men to probe the judiciary? Why should the health, education and agricultural sectors suffer just because he wants to select judicial persons to probe corrupt public servants of the past? I believe in the probe and anti-corruption crusade, but not at the expense of good governance.
If you’re saying the military sneaked in through the back door, what about Obasanjo’s administration?
Obasanjo was a military person. He sneaked in too!
Do you think he ruled well?
Of what use would my judgment be now?
What do you think is Goodluck Jonathan’s greatest achievement as a president?
He created so many universities! He created 12 universities. Each geo-political zones got at least one. Education is the main swan song of this administration. So, let’s have free education. It will introduce us into the world of industrialization and technology. People are yet to realize how good Jonathan is. Throughout his administration, he never jailed anybody! Why shouldn’t I clap for him? I’m not a member of the PDP.
People said you’re his supporter because he gives you money.
That’s the most unfair allegation that had been leveled against me! I have developed very thick skin against such allegation. When I introduced the UPN, I remembered what Lai Mohammed, the APC spokesman, said. He said that Jonathan had given me N2.8 billion to confront APC in the south west. May God forgive him. There are some countries that don’t have N2.8 billion as their GDP.
For your information, I applied for the pipeline security guard job since 2011. NNPC didn’t call us for interview until two years ago. During the interview, NNPC said it can’t give OPC the contract because it wasn’t a registered organization. I then offered a limited liability company of mine. We went for another interview and we were accepted. New Age and Global Ltd was given the contract. They specified the number of personnel we should use for the job. In their contract, they said 4000 people for the job. I employed 4020 for the job. We were not given mobilization, not even a dime! We spent our own money to mobilise and equipped the personnel. We were on the pipeline for three months.
During our stay at the pipelines, there was no report of a loss of one drop of oil. We did it for three months. The contract came to an end. We expected a good government to pay now the contract had expired, but till date, we’re still begging the government to pay what it owes us.
Those who were employed at the pipelines, come here every day. They ask me when they shall be paid.
So it’s not as if government revoked the agreement.
No! The contract expired. While we were at the pipelines, we cured that disease; I don’t know why they decided to call back the disease.
Why did you form UPN?
My old baby, OPC, has many hands. As for UPN, somebody has been telling the whole world that he’s the chairman. He’s a pretender. I’m still the national chairman of the organization. All the papers are with me. The certificate of registration is with me. The various letters, authorizing the existence of UPN are with me. Whenever I hear someone claiming to be the chairman of UPN, I just laugh. It provides me some hilarity. I founded the UPN on virtually the same theme with OPC. If you compare the various political parties that have come into existence in Nigeria, you’ll find out that many of them hadn’t performed to the expectation of Nigeria. But the UPN of old, performed to the expectations of Nigeria. Free education; it didn’t matter your ethnic background. There was housing, rural development and infrastructure. Some of the infrastructures are still around. I said we should resuscitate it. Some people were singing during the pre-election period; they said they wanted to introduce free education.
They came into power and some school had her school fees jacked up from N25,000 to N325,000. The minimum wage in Nigeria is N18,000. So, children of N18,000 earners are condemned. There was no way their parents would be able to pay N325,000. Some of the politicians deceived us. Many of our children dropped out of school when the fee was jacked up. Are you then surprised that there is so much insecurity in the society? So much robberies and kidnappings? Let specialists sit down together and diagnosed why Nigeria is like this. The fault is in us!
Do you think Buhari’s appointments are lopsided?
If it’s not lopsided, then nothing is!
Even with the appointment of our own Femi Adesina?
Adesina merited that position. He had always been a good performer. There are many Nigerians who are good performers. Although the president said he’s unable to find 36 decent Nigerians and that’s a terrible indictment on the nation. We are 170 million people and you can’t find 36 decent ones among them. It means we are all crooks and investors wouldn’t come here to invest. Some of the things we say about our country undermine our country.
If you sell fruits and go to the market square to shout that your fruits are rotten, nobody will buy from you. Some Nigerians travel out to say that the country is bad because the leaders are bad. I’ll chastise leaders in my country, but I had never made any nasty comment about my country. We hope the new government will find its feet. The pre-campaign exercise made Nigerians very expectant. What we’re getting now is making one to ask, ‘is this change’?
Are you saying its anti-climax? Buhari still has four years to go. The time frame is too short to score him.
Morning shows the day! He could have made some pronouncements on education. His government should be comprehensive, not selective. Whatever it is, I’m now too old to enjoy any government; either good or bad, but posterity will say there were people who said this was bad. UPN will be a fantastic shadow government. We won’t be hostile. We’ll criticize and provide solutions.