Page 308 - They Also Served

Stevens. Promoted to brigadier and head of the army, Bangura was awarded a CBE in the Commonwealth New Year’s Honours list of 1970.
However, as Stevens’ leadership became more autocratic, the charismatic and popular Bangura, an avowed champion of democracy, became a threat. After cuts to the army budget brought more criticism from Bangura, Stevens had him arrested for conspiracy and sentenced to death. Although Stevens was only in power thanks to Bangura, he was determined to eliminate his rival, and no clemency was given. On 29th March 1970, Bangura refused to walk meekly to the gallows, so he was savagely beaten and carried to the scaffold. Afterwards, his body was doused in concentrated acid and buried in secret under the foundations of a new road. This overkill echoed the fate of the Congolese prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, in 1961, when similar efforts were made to destroy the body and, therefore, the legend. Stevens remained in power until 1985. In his memoirs, he wrote: ‘For me it was a dreadful act. I should not have allowed Bangura’s execution’.
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