Former military ruler Ibrahim Babangida reveals how his administration enlisted top economists and technocrats, including Prof Ojetunji Aboyade and Dr Chu Okongwu, to implement economic reforms. His autobiography details the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP), privatization efforts, and the controversial suppression of SAP riots that followed public backlash.
Former military president General Ibrahim Babangida has shed light on how his administration assembled some of Nigeria’s most renowned economists and technocrats to steer the country’s economy through a turbulent period. In his newly released autobiography, A Journey in Service, Babangida detailed the strategic decisions behind his economic policies, particularly the introduction of the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP), which sparked nationwide protests.
Babangida emphasized that his government sought out the best minds in economics, policy, and finance, naming Prof. Ojetunji Aboyade, Prof. Ikenna Nzimiro, Michael Omolayole, Prof. Akin Mabogunje, Dr. Chu Okongwu, Chief Olu Falae, and Dr. Kalu Idika Kalu as key figures in shaping Nigeria’s economic direction. These experts, he explained, brought their collective experience to bear in crafting a blueprint for economic recovery.
His administration, he noted, was determined to move Nigeria away from a government-controlled economy toward privatization and commercial efficiency. This led to the establishment of the Technical Committee on Privatisation and Commercialisation (TCPC), spearheaded by Hamza Zayyad, which assessed government enterprises and recommended those for privatization.
Despite the administration’s optimism, the SAP—designed to stabilize Nigeria’s economy—triggered mass discontent. The removal of subsidies and economic deregulation policies led to inflation and hardship, culminating in the SAP riots, a wave of protests against the government. Babangida defended the decision to suppress the demonstrations, arguing that his military-led administration could not afford to appear weak.
The former leader also acknowledged the challenges of implementing SAP without external loans from institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He claimed that adopting a homegrown economic approach was a deliberate choice to maintain Nigeria’s sovereignty in economic policymaking.
Babangida dismissed criticisms that SAP lacked a "human face," maintaining that tough reforms were necessary to prevent economic collapse. He blamed political opponents for manipulating public sentiment against the policy, accusing them of misleading students and academics into fueling opposition.
Despite SAP’s controversial legacy, Babangida insisted that the economic blueprint his administration laid out was essential in reshaping Nigeria’s financial landscape, stating that history would judge the impact of those reforms.
