Twenty-five years after escaping Abacha’s execution order, Diya dies at 78
Twenty-Five years after escaping execution following alleged role in a phantom coup, Nigeria’s former Chief of General Staff, General Oladipo Diya has died on Sunday at about 1,05am at age 78 in a Lagos State Hospital.
Penpushing reports that a statement made available by Diya’s media adviser, Olawale Adekoya, which was signed by Oyesinmilola Diya, son of the late Deputy to former military dictator Sanni Abacha confirmed the death
The deceased’s first son, who is a lawyer announced the death in a terse statement stating that he(Diya) passed onto glory in the early hours of 26th March 2023, and called on Nigerians to keep the family in their prayers
“On behalf of the entire Diya family home and abroad; We announce the passing on to glory of our dear husband, father, grandfather, brother, Lt- General Donaldson Oladipo Oyeyinka Diya (Rtd) GCON, LLB, BL, PSC, FSS, mni’, the statement reads.
“Our dear daddy passed onto glory in the early hours of 26th March 2023.Please keep us in your prayers as we mourn his demise in this period. Further announcements will be made public in due course”, he wrote
Penpushing further reports that the deceased who was a Military General and lawyer was born on Monday, 3 April, 1944 in Odogbolu, Ogun State, South-West Nigeria, and attended Yaba Methodist School, Lagos from 1950–1956.
The late Diya thereafter became a pioneer student of Odogbolu Grammar School, which he attended from 1957 to 1962, and served as the Chief of General Staff, the de facto Vice President of Nigeria under military head of state, Sani Abacha, from 1994 to 1997.
Penpushing also reports that the late army boss previously served as Chief of Defence Staff and was Military Governor of Ogun State from January 1984 to August 1985, and it is recalled that while serving as Abacha’s Deputy, he was accused of plotting a coup to oust his paranoid boss.
The late Diya was arrested, tried and convicted by a military tribunal alongside other alleged coup plotters, but fate smiled on him and others on death row, as Abacha suddenly died in a mysterious circumstances
Penpushing reports that Diya alongside his co-travelers in the phantom coup while counting days for their execution were later released by the General Abdusalami Abubakar regime which succeeded Abacha’s dictatorship regime
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