‘I will live with this trauma all my life’, Tijani Babangida speaks after accident

Tijani Babangida, former Super Eagles winger and Ajax Amsterdam FC star, has recounted the accident that claimed the lives of his son, Fadil, and his younger brother, Ibrahim.

Babangida, his wife, and maid sustained injuries to their knees and legs.

The accident occurred on May 9, along the Kaduna–Zaria Road.

Recounting the ordeal in a 14-minute-long video documentary shared on the website of Ajax International on Thursday, the Super Eagles legend described the incident as a “nightmare.”.

He noted that, “It is hard to forget about it and move on when you suddenly lose your entire family.”

Mr Babangida, who is currently in The Netherlands, said he moved to the country to seek adequate medical treatment for him and his wife.

He said it was very difficult for him to lose his brother, also an ex-international who played for Nigeria at the 1993 FIFA U-17 World Cup-winning team, and who usually travelled with him.

Babangida, in the emotional documentary, said he could not, “bear looking at photos and videos of my son, adding that his wife struggles to remember the name or “anything” about the boy.

“This is a nightmare. I think I will live with this trauma for the rest of my life. It is hard to forget about it and move on when you suddenly lose your entire family. This is my first time talking about the accident because I couldn’t do it. I can’t bear looking at photos and videos of my son.

“It is even harder for my wife. She is an actress in Nigeria, famous in the northern part of the country. After being married a year, we had a baby. And suddenly, he was gone.

“And my brother, who always joined me when I travelled. For me, I only injured my legs and knees. I had to assist my wife. That’s why I came here with my wife to get proper medical treatment. It’s hard.

“After three months in The Netherlands, I was finally able to tell her that our child was in the car when the accident took place. She started [to] ask about his name. She can’t remember anything about him. She’s so strong that she managed to survive,” Mr Babangida said.

The video showed Babangida meeting with his former coach, Louis Van Gaal.

He appreciated his former teammates and coach for the support offered to him during the trying moment.