Former winger with the Super eagles, Tijani Babangida survived an auto crash claimed his younger brother, Ibrahim Babangida who died on the spot.
Babangida, who is the President of the Professional Footballers Association of Nigeria (PFAN), and Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games gold medalist, was said to be driving when his car ran into a moving trailer along Kaduna -Zaria Road.
His former teammate, Emmanuel Babayaro, who is the General Secretary of PFAN, disclosed the sad news in a statement, saying “Comrades! Let us pray for our president, Tijani Babangida, who just had a ghastly motor accident along the Kaduna-Zaria Road.
“Ibrahim Babangida, his younger brother, died on the spot from the accident while Mr President (Babangida) and his family were taken to the hospital. May the soul of Ibrahim Babangida Rest in Peace with God, amen,” he stated.
Babayaro said the senior Babngida is currently admitted at Shika Hospital in Zaria, where he is receiving treatment and to the glory of God he is conscious.
The late Ibrahim, 47, a retired footballer himself, was a member of the 1993 FIFA U-17 World Cup-winning Golden Eagles squad in Japan.
He featured for local sides Bank of the North, Stationery Stores and Katsina United on the domestic scene before joining Dutch side Volendam in 1997.
Corroborating the incident, Kaduna State Chairman of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), Shehu Abdullahi said, “It is true, he was travelling to Zaria when he (Tijani Babangida ) who was driving ran into a trailer according to an eyewitness, losing his brother with himself and others in board sustaining varying degrees of injuries,” he said.
