President, Olusegun Obasanjo has said that he
had no knowledge of his late wife, Stella’s
plan to undergo the cosmetic procedure that
led to her death.
Mr. Obasanjo disclosed this in his
autobiography, My Watch, which was released
on December 8.
The late first lady died on October 23, 2005,
following a botched tummy tuck – elective
liposuction – procedure in Spain.
The surgery
was scheduled towards the commemoration of
her 60th birthday.
“After the internment, I decided to look into
the circumstances of her death,” Mr. Obasanjo
wrote on page 240 of Volume two of the book.
“I found that part of her 60th birthday
anniversary, which was unknown to me, was
her operation for her tummy and her shape.”
Mr. Obasanjo also addressed the insinuations
that his wife’s death may have been a
“sacrifice” he carried out for success in his
job.
“Before the verdict in Spain, I was unaware of
what I came to hear later that I might have
caused the death of my wife to sacrifice her
for success in my job,” he wrote.
“That is how
wicked and satanic some Nigerians can be in
their rumours and mischief.”
He referred to the doctor who carried out the
surgery as “careless” and narrated how with
the help of the Nigerian Embassy in Spain
and the Spanish authorities, he got justice for
his wife’s death.
“I instructed that the doctor and the clinic be
prosecuted,” he said. “The lost life cannot be
brought back but the successful prosecution
would prevent carelessness and loss of life in
the future.”
The doctor, according to the former president,
was made to pay damages, which was
collected by Olu Obasanjo, Stella’s son, and
his licence withdrawn for a period of time.
Mr. Obasanjo was however full of praises for
his wife, whom he married in 1976, four years
after the formal dissolution of his first
marriage.
He commended her for handling the
confrontations she had with his first wife,
Remi, with maturity, for accepting children he
had with other women as her own, and for
campaigning for his release while he was in
jail as well as supporting him during his
presidency.
Mr. Obasanjo said shortly before her death,
Stella, who was Roman Catholic, ensured that
her marriage was blessed by the church in a
small private ceremony at the Aso Villa
conducted by Mathew Kukah, now the
Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese.
According to Mr. Obasanjo, after the
ceremony, his late wife thanked him and said,
“You have relieved me.” Mr. Obasanjo’s book
was met with controversy following its
publication and launch.
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