By Erewunmi Peace

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s recent denial of pursuing a third term in office has stirred controversy, as former federal lawmaker Dr. Usman Bugaje insists that attempts were indeed made to extend Obasanjo’s stay in power.

Obasanjo, speaking at a democracy dialogue organized by the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation in Accra, Ghana, said no Nigerian could claim he personally asked for a third term. He further boasted that if he had truly wanted it, he would have succeeded.

However, Bugaje has dismissed the former president’s comments, alleging that Obasanjo’s administration deployed both threats and financial inducements in an attempt to push through a third-term agenda in the National Assembly.

According to Bugaje, lawmakers at the time were under immense pressure. He recalled instances where legislators were offered money to support the controversial constitutional amendment and others were intimidated. He cited the case of Senator Victor Lar, then leader of the Northern Caucus in the House of Representatives, who reportedly went into hiding to avoid being coerced.

“Everybody in the National Assembly at that time knew what was going on,” Bugaje stated, stressing that Obasanjo’s denial was an attempt to rewrite history.

The alleged third-term plot, which was a major political controversy in 2006, was eventually defeated after widespread opposition from civil society, lawmakers, and prominent Nigerians who argued it would undermine the nation’s democracy.

With Obasanjo maintaining his stance and Bugaje standing firmly on his claims, the debate over Nigeria’s democratic history has once again been reopened — raising fresh questions about the country’s political past and the integrity of its democratic institutions.