Twenty-eight years after MKO Abiola died in detention, former Head of State Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar (rtd) has dropped a bombshell: Abiola wasn't poisoned. He died of a heart condition.

In his autobiography, Call of Duty, unveiled Saturday at the Presidential Villa in Abuja to mark his 84th birthday, the retired general says an international autopsy settled the matter once and for all.

“I don't believe Abiola was poisoned. The family requested an autopsy and we assembled American, British, Nigerian and Canadian pathologists to conduct it. The autopsy report attributed his death to natural causes,” Abubakar writes.

The book launch drew top dignitaries, including President Bola Tinubu, who was represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima. Two other publications were also launched at the event.

Abubakar reveals that Abiola had been battling serious health problems years before his death. The businessman and politician was known to suffer from hypertension and other cardiovascular complications during his detention.

“As far back as 1994 when he was arrested by the Abacha Administration for declaring himself President, it was public knowledge that Abiola was managing certain medical conditions which could seriously affect the quality of life of any human being.”

He references a 1994 medical assessment by Col. (Dr) O. Awofeso, then Chief Consultant Radiologist at the Nigerian Army Defence Hospital in Sokoto. The report indicated Abiola had an enlarged heart with signs consistent with hypertensive heart disease.

Abubakar also recounts Abiola's final moments during a meeting with a US delegation led by Tom Pickering, then U.S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, and Susan Rice, then Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs. Drawing from Rice's 2019 memoir, Tough Love, Abubakar says Abiola began coughing shortly after the meeting started.

“Rice said she noticed Abiola’s ankles were swollen. About five minutes into their conversation, according to her, ‘Abiola started to cough, at first mildly and intermittently, and then wrackingly with consistency.’”

As the coughing worsened, Abiola complained of feeling unusually hot and asked for the air conditioning to be turned up. Medical personnel were called and concluded he was having a heart attack.

The former head of state said he was shocked when his Chief Security Officer, Abdulrasheed Aliyu, who had accompanied the American delegation, called to break the news.

“Aliyu, my CSO, called me. As soon as I picked, he said, in a shaky voice, that there was a problem. I asked: ‘What problem again?’ He said Abiola was dead. My head went blank,” Abubakar recalled.

He personally delivered the tragic news to Abiola's family. One of Abiola's daughters broke down and was comforted by Rice.

Abubakar argued that allowing the American delegation access to Abiola helped dispel conspiracy theories.

“If we hadn't allowed the American delegation to see him and he'd died in custody, it would've been a different story. It would've been insinuated that he'd long died and we were trying to cover it up.”

  • Abiola died on July 7, 1998, in detention under the Abdulsalami administration.
  • An international autopsy team – American, British, Nigerian, and Canadian pathologists – conducted the examination.
  • A 1994 medical report by Col. (Dr) O. Awofeso showed Abiola had an enlarged heart and hypertensive heart disease.
  • The US delegation present at his death included Tom Pickering and Susan Rice.
  • Abubakar's memoir, Call of Duty, was unveiled on June 13, 2026, in Abuja.