The story of Debo Basorun and Babangida is one of the most remarkable personal ruptures within Nigeria’s military establishment during the 1980s. Major Adebowale “Debo” Basorun served close to General Ibrahim Babangida as his press secretary, occupying a position that placed him between the military presidency and Nigeria’s increasingly assertive press.
Within a few years, however, that relationship had deteriorated dramatically. At the centre of Basorun’s later account of the breakdown was the assassination of journalist Dele Giwa, founding editor-in-chief of Newswatch, who was killed by a parcel bomb at his Ikeja residence on 19 October 1986.
Basorun subsequently maintained that his attempts to understand the circumstances surrounding Giwa’s death, together with his growing distrust of military intelligence officials, brought him into conflict with powerful figures within the administration. By late 1988, the dispute had developed into a confrontation over his Army posting and attempted resignation. In 1989, it reached the Lagos High Court and the Court of Appeal.
Debo Basorun and Babangida Before the Break
Basorun had served within Army public relations before becoming closely associated with Babangida. Accounts of his career describe him as the military president’s press secretary, while the titles Military Press Secretary and Press and Public Affairs Officer have also been used for his position.
His responsibilities placed him close to the presidency during the early years of the Babangida administration, which began after the military overthrow of Major-General Muhammadu Buhari on 27 August 1985.
Basorun later recalled that he initially enjoyed a good relationship with Babangida and regarded himself as an important link between the government and the media. His position also gave him access to senior military officers and discussions surrounding the administration.
The relationship changed substantially after Dele Giwa’s assassination.
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Dele Giwa’s Murder and a Deepening Crisis
Dele Giwa was one of the founders of Newswatch, the influential Nigerian news magazine established in the mid-1980s by Giwa, Ray Ekpu, Dan Agbese and Yakubu Mohammed.
On 19 October 1986, Giwa received a parcel at his home in Ikeja, Lagos. The package exploded while he was handling it, fatally injuring him. His assassination became one of the most notorious killings in Nigerian media history.
Basorun later said that questions surrounding the murder changed his relationship with the government and particularly affected his dealings with military intelligence officials.
His 2013 memoir, Honour for Sale: An Insider Account of the Murder of Dele Giwa, presented his account of events inside the military government and his suspicions concerning the circumstances of Giwa’s death.
The assassination remained a major subject of controversy in Nigeria for decades, with journalists, lawyers, civil society organisations and members of Giwa’s family continuing to demand answers.
Basorun became one of the former insiders who spoke publicly about the circumstances surrounding the case and his experiences within the Babangida administration.
The Controversial American Assignment
Another major stage in the Debo Basorun and Babangida dispute came in 1988.
Basorun said that Babangida instructed him to travel to the United States in May that year to represent the Nigerian government at an event involving Ray Ekpu, who had succeeded Giwa as editor-in-chief of Newswatch.
According to Basorun’s later account, the assignment had additional dimensions. He said he was expected to make contact with public-relations professionals who could develop a programme aimed at improving the international image of the Nigerian military government.
Basorun also said he was asked to monitor certain Nigerians attending the event and was given contact details for a person he was expected to reach while in the United States.
He said he refused to carry out that part of the assignment.
Basorun later described the episode as a crucial moment in his deteriorating relationship with the administration. He interpreted the public-relations initiative as part of efforts to repair the regime’s image following the controversy surrounding Giwa’s assassination.
After returning to Nigeria, his difficulties with military intelligence intensified.
The Makurdi Posting
By 1988, Basorun said he had become increasingly concerned about his position within the military establishment.
Richard Akinnola later wrote that Basorun was transferred in November 1988 to the 31 Airborne Brigade in Makurdi, in present-day Benue State.
Basorun opposed the transfer. In later interviews, he explained that he feared for his life and believed the posting could place him in a dangerous position.
He subsequently approached prominent lawyer Alao Aka-Bashorun.
Aka-Bashorun was then President of the Nigerian Bar Association, an office he held from 1987 to 1989. He became one of the most prominent legal voices challenging abuses associated with military rule during the period.
Basorun said Aka-Bashorun’s chambers examined the relevant military regulations before advising him about the possibility of resigning from the Army.
According to Akinnola’s account, Basorun submitted his resignation on 23 December 1988.
The Army authorities continued to require him to report to his assigned unit in Makurdi, and the dispute eventually moved into the courts.
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Major Adebowale Basorun Goes to Court
Basorun’s confrontation with the Army entered the Nigerian judicial system in 1989.
The appellate proceedings were recorded as Major Adebowale Basorun v. Chief of Army Staff & Others, Court of Appeal case number CA/L/80M/89.
The Court of Appeal delivered a ruling on 27 June 1989.
The panel included Justices Ephraim Omorose Ibukun Akpata, Bolarinwa Oyegoke Babalakin and Francis Olisa Awogu.
The proceedings arose from Basorun’s case before Justice Olusola Thomas of the Lagos High Court, recorded as Suit No. M/23/89.
Alao Aka-Bashorun represented Basorun.
The Army authorities had initially been represented by counsel from the chambers of Aminu Dahiru & Co. At a later hearing, M. O. Adio, then Director of Litigation in the Federal Ministry of Justice, appeared for the defendants.
Aka-Bashorun objected to Adio’s appearance because the previous lawyers had not formally withdrawn.
Justice Thomas dismissed the objection.
The procedural dispute subsequently reached the Court of Appeal, where an application was made for a stay of further proceedings in the Lagos High Court while the appeal was considered.
On 27 June 1989, the Court of Appeal granted a stay of further proceedings in Suit No. M/23/89 pending determination of the appeal concerning Adio’s appearance.
The litigation became part of Basorun’s wider confrontation with the Nigerian Army during the final months before his departure from the country.
The Armed Courtroom Episode
One of the most dramatic episodes associated with Basorun’s court battle concerns his decision to attend court armed.
Basorun later recalled going to court carrying a weapon because he feared soldiers might attempt to seize him.
Richard Akinnola provided a more detailed account of the incident. He wrote that Basorun arrived dressed in a flowing agbada with two Israeli Uzi weapons strapped beneath his clothing and another pistol concealed in a pocket.
Akinnola also described armed soldiers being present around the court.
According to his account, Basorun warned Aka-Bashorun that he believed an attempt might be made to seize him and take him to Makurdi. Basorun feared that a confrontation could follow if soldiers attempted to arrest him.
Aka-Bashorun and other lawyers left the immediate area after the court session while Basorun prepared for what he feared might happen.
The anticipated confrontation did not occur.
Basorun left without a gun battle developing.
The episode became one of the most dramatic moments recalled in accounts of his confrontation with the military authorities.
Escape to the United States
Basorun eventually left Nigeria.
In a 2013 interview with P.M. News, he said that he left Nigeria on 19 April 1989 and arrived in the United States on 22 April 1989.
He subsequently spent many years in exile in America. TELL later reported that he lived there for about 18 years before returning to Nigeria.
His departure did not immediately end the legal proceedings connected with his dispute. The Court of Appeal ruling in the case bearing his name was delivered on 27 June 1989, after he had already left Nigeria.
Years later, Basorun began recounting publicly the events that had led to his departure.
His memoir, Honour for Sale: An Insider Account of the Murder of Dele Giwa, was published by Bookcraft in Ibadan in 2013. The book examined his experiences within the military establishment, his relationship with Babangida, his dealings with military intelligence officials and his interpretation of the events surrounding Dele Giwa’s assassination.
The Dele Giwa Case Decades Later
The assassination of Dele Giwa remained part of Nigeria’s legal and political discourse long after the Babangida era.
On 16 February 2024, Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the Attorney-General of the Federation to reopen investigation and prosecution efforts relating to the murder of Dele Giwa and the killings of other Nigerian journalists.
The judgment arose from litigation brought by the Incorporated Trustees of Media Rights Agenda concerning the protection of journalists and the obligation of government authorities to investigate attacks against members of the press.
In January 2026, the Federal Government approached the Court of Appeal in Abuja seeking an extension of time to challenge the 2024 judgment.
Giwa’s death, almost four decades after the parcel bomb explosion of October 1986, therefore continued to occupy an important place in Nigerian debates about journalism, accountability and state power.
Conclusion
The conflict involving Debo Basorun, Ibrahim Babangida and the Nigerian Army reveals the tensions that could develop even within the inner circles of military government.
Basorun began the Babangida era as an officer close to the presidency and responsible for communicating with the press. He later emerged as one of the administration’s most outspoken former insiders.
His dispute involved the questions surrounding Dele Giwa’s assassination, a controversial assignment in the United States, conflict with military intelligence, a posting to Makurdi, an attempted resignation and litigation involving Army authorities.
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His later interviews and memoir preserve his account of the fear, suspicion and political tensions surrounding those events, while the 1989 court proceedings form an important part of the wider story.
The episode remains closely connected to the history of military government, press freedom, state power and the continuing search for answers about one of Nigeria’s most famous unsolved assassinations.
Author’s Note
The story of Debo Basorun demonstrates how the assassination of one journalist reached far beyond the newsroom and became intertwined with the politics of Nigeria’s military establishment. His transformation from presidential press secretary to litigant against Army authorities reveals the intense pressures surrounding government officials, intelligence agencies, lawyers and journalists during the Babangida years. The continuing public interest in Dele Giwa’s murder also shows why the events of October 1986 remain central to discussions of press freedom, accountability and the exercise of state power in modern Nigerian history.
References
Basorun, Debo. Honour for Sale: An Insider Account of the Murder of Dele Giwa. Ibadan: Bookcraft, 2013.
Court of Appeal of Nigeria. Major Adebowale Basorun v. Chief of Army Staff & Others, CA/L/80M/89, 27 June 1989.
Akinnola, Richard. “Major Bashorun’s Fight for Justice.” Law & Society Magazine.
P.M. News. “Debo Basorun: Why I Fled Nigeria.” 21 November 2013.
TELL Magazine. “‘IBB Can Sweet-talk Anybody to Death’, Debo Bashorun.” 25 November 2013.
Channels Television. “Channels Book Club Reviews Major Bashorun’s Book on Dele Giwa’s Murder.” 2 July 2014.
Channels Television. “Court Orders AGF to Re-Open Prosecution of Dele Giwa’s Killers.” 16 February 2024.
TheCable. “FG Moves to Appeal Judgment Reopening Dele Giwa Murder Probe.” 19 January 2026.
