Former Senate President, Adolphus Wabara has explained his reason for turning down a bribe of N250 million, which was meant to sway him to support the third-term bid in 2006.

According to Wabara, he refused the money due to his educational background.

Reports indicated that the third-term agenda took the form of a bill for a constitutional amendment that would allow then-President Olusegun Obasanjo to run for a third term in office.

Wabara, who had lost his position as Senate President after resigning in the midst of a budget scandal in 2005, delivered a compelling argument on the Senate floor that many believed influenced the subsequent voting.

Reflecting on the events in an interview on Untold Stories with Adesuwa Giwa-Osagie, Wabara stated that he never regretted rejecting the bribe. He added that his educational background in the Soviet Union, where he was taught to abhor corruption, greatly influenced his decision.

Wabara said, "I turned down a N250 million bribe to support the third term agenda. The money came to me by 1:30 a.m., before my third-term speech. It came in a sparkling black G-Wagon. I can still remember that it was in a black G-Wagon and a rickety 504 station wagon. The money was discharged, and my wife was there."

The former lawmaker expressed sorrow, noting that those in position of power have used poverty as a tool.

He said: "Hunger misdirects, and my people say that when you are having leaves or whatever the goat eats, you are the person they will continue to follow. That is what is happening in our democracy today because of hunger.

"The elders and the politicians—those in government—are not creating the enabling environments to eschew hunger. It is a deliberate act to continue to make the electorate hungry so that they will continue to follow sheepishly.

“So, there will be stomach infrastructure before they start thinking whether we are being led right.”