On June 15, 1998, former President Olusegun Obasanjo was released from Yola Maximum Prison in Adamawa State.
General Sani Abacha’s military government had arrested him in March 1995 over an alleged plot to overthrow the government.
Obasanjo was convicted by a secret military tribunal and sentenced to life imprisonment, later commuted to 15 years.
He spent about 3 years, 3 months in prison. During that time, he focused on farming, preaching, and writing sermons.
Obasanjo was released a week after Abacha’s death, when General Abdulsalami Abubakar took over.
As one of his first acts, Abubakar ordered the release of nine political prisoners, including Obasanjo.
