General Babangida, known as IBB, by others as ‘The Evil Genius’ is a Nigerian general that ruled Nigeria from 1985 to 1993 after displacing Muhammadu Buhari in a coup d’ètat. Prior to this, Babangida had served the Nigerian Army during the Nigerian Civil War; during which time he was also involved with various coups.
The years in which Babangida ruled Nigeria are regarded as a period of particular corruption amidst the political elite; it was also characterised by internal strife, including two coup attempts, and conflict among ethnic and religious in the country.
- Born: August 17, 1941
- Birthplace: Minna, Northern Region, British Nigeria
- 1985-08-27 -General Ibrahim Babangida overthrows Major General Muhammadu Buhari’s regime in Nigeria..
- 1986-06-27- Ibrahim Babangida’s regime in Nigeria launches the ‘Structural Adjustment Program” to restructure the Nigerian economy via deregulation and privatization with the support of the IMF and the World Bank
- 1987-09-23 -Nigerian President Ibrahim Babangida creates two states: Akwa Ibom and Katisna
- 1991-08-27 Nigerian President Ibrahim Babangida creates nine states: Abia, Enugu, Delta, Jigawa, Kebbi, Osun, Kogi, Taraba, and Yobe
- 1993-06-23 Nigeria’s military dictator, General Ibrahim Babangida, annuls results of presidential elections and halts a return to democracy
- 1993-08-26 Ernest Shonekan is appointed interim president of Nigeria by General Ibrahim Babangida..
One of the first actions of Major-General Ibrahim Babangida (b. 1941) as military Head of State was to allow Nigerians to decide, through public debates, whether to accept the $2.5 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan the Muhammad Buhari (b. 1942) government had been negotiating for.
After the terror of the Buhari years, Nigerians appeared to have found a statesman in military uniform.
