Former House of Representatives Minority Leader Farouk Aliyu has alleged that he was offered N250 million to support the 2006 third-term agenda of then President Olusegun Obasanjo, an offer he says he turned down.
Aliyu made the claim on the Naija Unfiltered Podcast, where he recounted his experience as a lawmaker during the debate over a constitutional amendment that could have allowed Obasanjo to seek a third consecutive term.
Meeting with Obasanjo
According to Aliyu, the episode began when the then Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman, Nuhu Ribadu, asked him to come to Abuja to meet Obasanjo. He said he first refused, but travelled after Ribadu appealed to him as a friend.
In Abuja, he said, he met an unnamed individual who offered him N250 million to back the proposal.
“Third term was real. In fact, N250 million was given to me. I didn’t take it,” he said.
Allegations against other lawmakers
Aliyu claimed the offer was part of a broader effort to win over legislators. He alleged that the then Speaker, Aminu Masari, was offered N500 million and the then Majority Leader, Abdul Ningi, N400 million, and that both declined.
“And N50 million was just dashed to small, small fries,” he alleged.
He said he later returned to Abuja to discuss the proposal and made his position clear. “I came back to Abuja to discuss the third term, and I told them it won’t fly,” he said.
Aliyu added that Ribadu had told him Obasanjo was willing to meet him personally after efforts to persuade him failed. He said he maintained his opposition and rejected the alleged inducement.
Background
The National Assembly rejected the proposed constitutional amendments in May 2006, ending the effort to extend the president’s tenure beyond 2007.
Obasanjo has long denied pursuing a third term. In September 2025, he said no Nigerian, living or dead, could truthfully claim he told them he wanted one.
The claims are Aliyu’s own and were not independently verified in the account. There was no immediate response from the individuals he named.
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