Hidden Atrocities: Falana Reveals Untold Murders That Preceded The Ogoni 9 Execution Under Abacha

Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana, has recounted in detail how the late military dictator, General Sani Abacha, and his regime orchestrated the killings of the Ogoni 4 and Ogoni 9 in 1995.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Falana made the revelation during the 84th posthumous birthday lecture of environmental activist Ken Saro-Wiwa in Port Harcourt on Saturday.

The senior lawyer, who alongside the late Gani Fawehinmi (SAN) defended Saro-Wiwa and other Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) leaders, said they withdrew from the proceedings after the special military tribunal blocked them from presenting critical evidence in defense of the accused.

According to Falana, in a bid to tighten control over the oil-rich Ogoniland, Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) was granted permission by the Nigerian government to import arms and ammunition under the guise of protecting its facilities.

He explained that the weapons soon ended up in the hands of militant youths, leading to violent clashes among communities — a strategy he described as a “divide-and-rule tactic” aimed at distracting the Ogoni people while oil exploitation continued unchecked.

“When that failed, the Task Force led by Col. Paul Okuntimo recruited misguided militants to kill the Ogoni 4,” Falana said. “The soldiers present at the scene made no arrests. Instead, they removed the victims’ bodies and took them to an undisclosed location.”

Falana added that shortly after, the then Military Governor of Rivers State, Col. Dauda Komo, publicly declared that Ken Saro-Wiwa and other MOSOP leaders would be held responsible for the killings — even before any investigation had begun.

He noted that although the initial murder charges at the Rivers State High Court were dropped due to weak evidence, Abacha ordered the constitution of a special military tribunal, which rejected key defense evidence to ensure the conviction and execution of the Ogoni 9.

“The tribunal was designed to deliver a predetermined verdict,” Falana concluded, describing the entire process as a state-sanctioned miscarriage of justice.