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Oladipo Diya (Donaldson Oladipo Oyeyinka Diya) was born on 3 April, 1944 in Odogbolu, Southern Region, British Nigeria (now in Ogun State, Nigeria), is a Nigerian general and politician (1944–2023). Discover Oladipo Diya's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. Learn How rich is he in this year and how he spends money? Also learn how he earned most of networth at the age of 78 years old?

Popular As Donaldson Oladipo Oyeyinka Diya
Occupation Military officer · lawyer
Age 78 years old
Zodiac Sign Aries
Born 3 April 1944
Birthday 3 April
Birthplace Odogbolu, Southern Region, British Nigeria (now in Ogun State, Nigeria)
Date of death 26 March, 2023
Died Place Lagos, Nigeria
Nationality Niger

We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous People born on 3 April. He is a member of famous deputy with the age 78 years old group.

Oladipo Diya Height, Weight & Measurements

At 78 years old, Oladipo Diya height not available right now. We will update Oladipo Diya's Height, weight, Body Measurements, Eye Color, Hair Color, Shoe & Dress size soon as possible.

Physical Status
Height Not Available
Weight Not Available
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Who Is Oladipo Diya's Wife?

His wife is Deborah Folashade Diya

Family
Parents Not Available
Wife Deborah Folashade Diya
Sibling Not Available
Children Not Available

Oladipo Diya Net Worth

His net worth has been growing significantly in 2023-2024. So, how much is Oladipo Diya worth at the age of 78 years old? Oladipo Diya’s income source is mostly from being a successful deputy. He is from Niger. We have estimated Oladipo Diya's net worth, money, salary, income, and assets.

Net Worth in 2024 $1 Million - $5 Million
Salary in 2024 Under Review
Net Worth in 2023 Pending
Salary in 2023 Under Review
House Not Available
Cars Not Available
Source of Income deputy

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Timeline

1944

Donaldson Oladipo Oyeyinka Diya, (3 April 1944 – 26 March 2023) was a Nigerian general and lawyer who served as Chief of General Staff (de facto vice president of Nigeria) under military head of state General Sani Abacha from 1994 until his arrest for treason in 1997.

Donaldson Oladipo Diya was born on 3 April 1944 in Odogbolu, Ogun State, then Western Region, Nigeria.

He had his primary education at Yaba Methodist Primary School, Lagos and Odogbolu Grammar School.

Diya joined the Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna and fought during the Nigerian Civil War.

1980

He later attended the US Army School of Infantry, the Command and Staff College, Jaji (1980–1981) and the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru.

While serving in the military, Diya studied law at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, where he obtained an LLB degree, and then at the Nigerian Law School, where he was called to bar as Solicitor and Advocate of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

Diya was Commander 31, Airborne Brigade.

1984

He also served as Chief of Defence Staff and as military governor of Ogun State from January 1984 to August 1985.

He was appointed Military Governor of Ogun State from January 1984 to August 1985.

1985

He became General Officer Commanding 82 Division, Nigeria Army in 1985.

1991

Diya was Commandant, National War College (1991–1993) and then was appointed Chief of Defence Staff.

1993

Diya was appointed Chief of General Staff in 1993 and Vice Chairman of the Provisional Ruling Council in 1994.

1994

As Chief of the General Staff, he was the de facto Vice President of Nigeria during the Sani Abacha military junta from 1994 until he was arrested for treason in 1997.

His Principal Staff Officer during this period was Bode George.

1997

In 1997 Diya and dissident soldiers in the military allegedly planned to overthrow the regime of Sani Abacha.

The alleged coup was uncovered by forces loyal to Abacha, and Diya and his cohorts were jailed.

Diya was tried in a military tribunal and was given the death penalty.

1998

Upon the untimely death of Abacha in 1998, Diya was pardoned by the late Head of State's successor, Abdusalami Abubakar.

Most people believed that the much-hyped coup was, in fact, a ploy by Abacha to do away with Diya, who was increasingly becoming popular among the elite and opposition parties, for his moderate views on the situation in Nigeria.

Earlier on, Abacha's loyalists had twice attempted to assassinate Diya, once at the airport and then in the streets, using bombs.

But most analysts said that whether motivated by a real coup plot or not, the arrest of General Diya signalled deep divisions within the Nigerian military and reflected rising tensions over General Abacha's apparent intention to remain in office by engineering his own election as President.

The fact that General Diya and almost all of the others arrested were ethnic Yoruba from the already deeply disaffected southwest was seen by some as a virtual provocation at a time when a country of powerful regional rivalries was entering into a period of renewed civilian politicking.

General Abacha, like his inner core of senior officers and much of the army's rank and file, was a Hausa-speaking northerner of Kanuri origin.

After his arrest, a military tribunal sitting in the Nigerian town of Jos sentenced six people including Lieutenant General Oladipo Diya to death by firing squad in April 1998.

The accused were brought to the main military barracks in Jos for the trial.

Security was tight, and the men on trial were chained at their ankles during the proceedings.

In a dramatic statement at the outset of the trial, General Diya asserted that he had been entrapped by another officer close to General Abacha, Gen. Ishaya Bamaiyi, who approached him with the idea of mounting a coup.

Given the explosive nature of the charge, the government then closed the trial to the public.

The head of the military tribunal, General Victor Malu, the former commander of the West African regional peacekeeping force ECOMOG, responding to Lieutenant General Diya's defence that people at the very top framed him, said it was not necessary to know who had initiated the conspiracy.

He noted that all Lieutenant General Diya had to do was prove that he had not been part of the plot at any stage.

General Malu assured the defendants that they would be given a fair trial and unlimited access to information they needed to defend themselves.

"This tribunal will not conduct or tolerate a trial by ambush", he said.

The South African government questioned the secrecy surrounding the trial and warned of the probability that there could be an unfavorable reaction, both in Nigeria and internationally, to a carrying out of the sentences.

The sentence was later commuted by the head of state, Abdusalami Abubakar, who succeeded General Abacha.

Lieutenant General Diya was not only released but also discharged from the army, stripped of his rank, and barred from using his military title.

Following his release, General Diya refused to co-operate with any investigations by Oputa Panel into his activities while he was vice president.

He spent most of his time attempting to recover possession of various properties seized by the government on his arrest.

He made no attempt to explain how he purchased these lavish properties on the salary of a lieutenant general.

2020

On 18 May 2020, General Diya's second wife Folashade Diya died a few days prior to her 65th birthday.

It was reported that she died from COVID-19 complications.