Mamman Vatsa: A General A Poet And A Pardon

A General, A Poet, and A Pardon: The Story of Mamman Vatsa and Ibrahim Babangida
The history of Nigeria is filled with dramatic stories, but few are as poignant and tragic as the story of Major General Mamman Jiya Vatsa and his childhood friend, former Military President General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida. Their lives ran on parallel tracks from childhood until a fateful day in 1986 when one ordered the execution of the other. Recently, a posthumous pardon has brought this old wound back into the light, offering a chance to reflect on a complex legacy.
The story of these two men begins in Niger State, where they were not just acquaintances but the closest of friends. Their journey together started in the classroom. Both Vatsa and Babangida attended the same schools, culminating at the prestigious Government College Bida from 1957 to 1962.

Their bond continued into their adult careers. On the very same day, December 10, 1962, both young men enlisted in the Nigerian Military Training College (Today, the prestigious NIGERIAN DEFENCE ACADEMY NDA). Since the college was not yet granting officer commissions, the government sent its best cadets abroad for training. Once again, Vatsa and Babangida were sent together, this time to the Indian Military Academy in Dehradun. They trained side-by-side, graduated together, and received their commissions as second lieutenants in the Nigerian Army on the same day in 1963. Their friendship was so deep that Babangida later served as the best man at Vatsa's wedding.
Mamman Vatsa built a brilliant and distinguished military career. He commanded the 21st battalion during the Nigerian Civil War and later became an instructor at the Nigerian Defence Academy in the 1970s—a post his friend Babangida also held around the same time. Vatsa went on to command several important infantry brigades and the elite Brigade of Guards. His strategic mind was recognized when he was made Commandant of the Nigerian Army School of Infantry, where he developed the Special Warfare Wing and laid the groundwork for the establishment of the 82nd Division of the Nigerian Army.

In a critical national moment in 1981, when Nigerian soldiers were killed in the disputed Bakassi area, it was then Brigadier Vatsa who was named Commander of the Joint Military Task Force and developed the operational plan for a potential conflict with Cameroon. When General Babangida took power in August 1985, Vatsa was a trusted member of the inner circle, serving as the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and sitting on the country's highest ruling councils.
Beyond the soldier, there was a poet. Mamman Vatsa was a celebrated writer and a generous patron of the arts. He published numerous books of poetry for both adults and children, with titles like "Reach for the Skies" and "Stinger the Scorpion." He used his position to help other writers, funding the Children's Literature Association of Nigeria and helping to build a Writers' Village for the Association of Nigerian Authors, which was later named in his honour.

This remarkable life came to a sudden and shocking end in December 1985. Vatsa was arrested and accused of plotting to overthrow the very government led by his childhood friend, General Babangida. The main evidence against him was that he had given a fellow officer, Lt. Col. Musa Bitiyong, a sum of ₦50,000. Vatsa insisted until the end that this was simply a loan for a farming project, but the military tribunal judged it to be funding for a coup.
After a swift trial, Major General Mamman Jiya Vatsa was found guilty of treason and sentenced to death. On March 5, 1986, he was executed by firing squad. The tragedy was deepened by the nine other officers who were executed alongside him. Their names are: