Thirty-one years ago, Nigerians trooped out in their numbers on June 12 to cast their votes for the choice candidate unbiased of his religious, tribal and ethnicity inclination. There was no consideration for political party leanings.
The Presidential election which was conducted by an erudite, no nonsense Professor of Political Science, Humphrey Nwosu for the two military created parties: National Republican Convention and Social Democratic Party where Bashir Tofa and Sylvester Ugoh were flag bearers of the NRC while Bashorun Moshood Abiola and Babagana Kingibe were the candidates of the SDP, went down the nation’s democratic record as the best ever before and even after till date.
Nwosu, the Chairman of National Electoral Commission introduced Option A4 which simply implied that the candidate’s photographs will be displayed at the various polling units and the electorates will queue in front of the photographs and be counted. There and then, the results would be announced.
With this option, it was nearly 100 percent impossible to rig or manipulate election results.
Electorates’ votes duly counted and their choices emerged winners. This was the case that produced the hero of Nigeria’s democracy, the late Bashorun Moshood Abiola as nationally accepted President elect on that fateful day, Saturday, June 12, 1993.
It was an overwhelming mandate that had never been since 1960 and has hitherto continued to elude the country even in the present dispensation of democracy.
The voters made up of men, women and youth were resolved to crown the man whose philanthropic life, a life he lived for the good of the people and country, cut across the now deadliest cancer eating up the fabric of her existence, and by the time NEC began to announce the results before the General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida military government suspended further announcement, the will of the people was clearly defined and pronounced.
However, the IBB’s boys as they were termed then, threw the country into utter crises by pronouncing later that the election adjudged the best ever had been annulled giving some untenable reasons like the acclaimed winner, Abiola wearing a symbol of his political party (horse) to cast his vote which signified campaigning openly on election day when campaign officially and legally ended 24 hours before the election.
“Nigerians are yet to be at par with the ideology behind the declaration as they are yet to see the reflection of the life of MKO Abiola in the policies and governance of the country”
A group tagged Association for Better Nigeria, led by Francis Arthur Nzeribe was said to have filed a suit challenging the authenticity of the election’s result where a candidate violated the electioneering rules and laws by publicly campaigning on election ground while voting was ongoing.
Prof. Nwosu was said to have received military order to stop forthwith the remaining results that would have officially pronounced Abiola and the SDP winners of the June 12, 1993 presidential election but Nigerians had already begun to jubilate based on the released results and knowing who they voted for, that MKO Abiola was the president-elect.
Their jubilation was cut short till these 31 years and never reclaimed even with the efforts by the acclaimed winner that eventually led to his demise in 1998.
A lawyer and political commentator, Remi Lambert, described the scenarios that played out in the case of June 12 as the foundation of Nigeria’s democracy but said its gains have been totally lost to politicians who have no reasons other than greed and selfishness to be in politics, becoming beneficiaries of such foundation laid on the blood of a nationalist.
“The June 12 we are celebrating now as our democracy day instead of May 29 is a welcome development but I ask, is that what June 12 stands for? No. Take a memory lane down to 1993 on what gave birth to this day, you will understand why I have said though the Federal Government has declared this day our democracy day yet our politicians have even destroyed the legacies that created June 12. Why was MKO Abiola, a Yoruba Muslim, from the south, with a Muslim Muslim ticket voted for overwhelmingly across the length and width of the country by Christians and Muslims in the south and north, Igbos, Hausas, Fulanis, Kanuris, Yorubas, Idomas, Tivs, Ijaws, Igalas, name them. This man was a true Nigerian by his deeds. He gave life to the dying Nigerians. In his time, he never pronounced fellow Nigerians as ordinary Nigerians as our politicians of these days call all of us even when most of them are the ordinary Nigerians saved by virtue of their stealing mandates given to others. There can hardly be a home MKO did not touch. He was a global businessman, employer of labour, and philanthropist. Our universities and tertiary institutions benefited immensely, the students and lecturers were not left out, sportsmen and women even journalists. Even these politicians, I mean from 1999 till date, are beneficiaries and we know it. What made some of them popular was June 12 but unfortunately they are opposite of what June 12 stands for and preaches.
“From those that have been conducting our elections since 1999 till date can Nigerians say we have a Humphrey Nwosu in charge? No. We have one Chairman of the electoral body who has a price tag, who is ready to turn black into white for a morsel of porridge recipe, we have the security agencies willing to protect the electoral fraudster and the judiciary that rubber-stamp all the evils and crimes against the will of the electorates and even the electorates willing to sell their voting rights for peanuts and mortgage their future for four years renewable. Even declaring June 12 as our democracy day is fraudulent. It was one of the deceitful games by the ruling APC in search of acceptance because they have little or nothing to give to us as good governance. It has been a trial and error approach to governance in the last nine years, precisely from former President Buhari’s government. So, what are we celebrating June 12 for? Last week the country lost billions of naira, if not trillions, to nationwide strikes as a result of government’s policies and refusal to pay their “ordinary Nigerian workers” a living wage while these politicians and their cronies earn and live like lords. Ask yourself, if it were to be MKO would workers be earning the pitiable take home salaries. Would Abiola have churned out these anti masses policies that have made life undeserved and unbearable? Would the cancer of tribalism and religious bigotry have taken over our political space? Associating June 12 with these politicians is very painful to some of us because they are parallel lines that can never meet,” he lamented.
The country is celebrating her newly found democracy day on June 12 after jettisoning the May 29 that was celebrated from the year 2000 after the swearing in of former President Olusegun Obasanjo on same day in 1999. The date was changed on June 6, 2018 by former President Muhammadu Buhari eight days after the celebration of democracy day of that year on May 29.
Nigerians are yet to be at par with the ideology behind the declaration as they are yet to see the reflection of the life of MKO Abiola in the policies and governance of the country.
A retired civil servant who said he worked in one of Abiola’s conglomerates before joining the civil service but pleaded anonymity said he was yet to see any Nigerian who has the kind of late MKO’s heart.
He said the blood that flowed from the veins of Abiola was different from that of the present day politicians and wealthy Nigerians.
According to him, “Chief MKO deserves whatever honours accorded him even in death. I was a staff of Concord Bulk Delivery at Oshodi in Lagos before I got a job in one of the federal ministries. I found it difficult to leave my former office but my family pressured me to take the new job because it’s pensionable. That was how I joined the civil service. I want to tell you that all the years I worked for him, he made our welfare a priority. Look at those who are buying cheap publicity with June 12 and how they are treating the civil servants. In their administrations, Nigerian workers are suffering. A government that is finding it very difficult to pay an average Nigerian worker equivalent of $300 as monthly salary but millions of dollars are approved for the politicians and their cronies who now earn jumbo salaries, cannot be celebrating MKO Abiola because they do not believe in or uphold his legacies. All they are doing is to seek cheap popularity with June 12. If they truly believe in June 12, they should reverse these draconic policies and bring policies with human face so that the poor can breathe. Removing all available subsidies and increasing taxes is the worst policy any government can introduce yet the government that has done this is telling us to celebrate with them when we are hungry and not even sure of any meal. It’s hypocrisy of the highest order.
Like I said earlier, the only thing good about this is that it plants the memory of my former employer, MKO, on the minds of the younger generation that were not born in 1993 as the man whose blood and life gave us democracy. These politicians are messing up today,” he said.
The devastations that followed the June 12 annulment disaster took the country decades to come to terms with the decision of the then military juntas under the self-acclaimed military president but more lights were shaded during the one and only Truth Commission headed by one of the country’s most revered jurists, Justice Chukwudifu Oputa where the most dreaded aide of the late General Sani Abacha’s regime, Major Hamza Al-Mustapha opened the can of worms that led to the annulment and eventual demise of Nigeria’s democracy hero.
Nigerians had tagged Al-Mustapha the hatchet man of the Abacha’s regime as well as the backbone of the then military junta till his exposé on the bloodletting regime which proved that the international community in disguise to assist the country turned her to puppets using some of the highly respected individuals. There were many in the military but more now among politicians.
Lives were lost. Killings and maiming of members of the pro-democracy groups became the order of the day. One of the wives of Bashorun Abiola, an activist, Kudirat Abiola was assassinated. Papa Alfred Rewani was assassinated at his residence in Ikeja on October 6, 1995. The list is endless.
A retired army officer who preferred anonymity said the secret behind the annulment of June 12 was hatched between the top military officers and some royal fathers and religious leaders who have continued to hold the country to ransom.
The officer said this class of people were afraid of MKO Abiola and tried all they could to bend him but that was impossible so they saw the annulment as the only option.
“Annulment of June 12 was hatched by the men Nigerians respected too much. They were in the military, traditional and religious circles. They were sorely afraid of the winner. They tried so much to get him on their side but were not able. He would talk one-on-one to them, tell them his mind, programme and ideology that, of course, differed from theirs and that made them very uncomfortable. When the results were being declared by Professor Nwosu, it was clear that Abiola and the SDP had won the election landslide. Then pressure increased with threat and there was nothing the military President could do than to submit. The irony was that this pressure was coming from the quarters that if you hear you will weep for this country. That’s why when people say religion this or that some of us pity them. Up there, there is one religion, there is one tribe and that is the rich and the poor. This has become more pronounced in this political dispensation. It was mild during the military era but now politicians use it as their major tool to get onto power. So what is the essence of celebrating June 12 as democracy day when the ills that disrupted the best election are much more there in our political space? It’s all about pancaking the deteriorated society to appear good.
“So long elections are manipulated in Nigeria, even brazenly to suit this same class of people, celebrating June 12 as democracy day is mocking the dead heroes and heroines. If we are celebrating our democracy day in remembrance of Abiola and his wife, Kudirat and all the genuine democrats who lost their lives because of June 12, then we must first and foremost endeavour to uphold their ideologies and beliefs. Abiola died serving and defending the interest of the common man but can we say that of our politicians now? While people celebrate June 12, I mourn because these politicians do not deserve to celebrate this date.”
Another political and social critic, Jeanbosco Ayuba described the celebration of June 12 as democracy day by politicians who don’t even believe democracy is totally the worst deceit. He said when people celebrate what they do not believe in, it is complete mockery.
“I expect President Bola Tinubu to make pronouncements in these directions. Is it too much an honour to appoint someone from his family a minister? They should answer this question”
“Who are those celebrating June 12 as Nigeria’s democracy day? The politicians who kill for power and office? Politicians who do not believe in any ideology other than where they will make money even if it takes killing all Nigerians? Politicians who have turned our elections to cash and carry? Late MKO was very rich before joining politics. Did he boast of buying his way with his money? If this crop of politicians were to be Abiola, they would have bought everything and everyone so that there would not be any contest. Check out the policies from former President Muhammadu Buhari who declared June 12 as democracy day to this present administration, you will see that they do not have anything in connection with late Abiola. All the anti-masses policies would not have reared its head in Abiola’s government. MKO was a man that said what he meant, not these men who say another thing when they mean another thing. Well, at least we will use this to continue to remember our heroes and heroines of democracy who paid the price for these hawks to fester on. That’s all I see about this shift from May 29 to June 12 as our democracy day.”
Looking at the features that made June 12 a true democracy day, a diaspora-based social scientist, David Oshomhoba, said the declaration was the high point of former President Buhari’s government.
“A day like June 12 should not be missing in the history of our country. It’s so historical that we should learn from it if we want to grow our democracy but unfortunately, all this noise about it is aimed at gaining popularity by the government in power because they, like their predecessors, have lost it all. They don’t have any plan for good governance. They seem confused with the kind of policies they’re making. Look at the acclaimed removal of fuel subsidy, electricity subsidy, increase in taxes and floating of naira. What good have any of these brought to the country’s economy? Are we not reading from the net that the Federal Government is still paying fuel subsidies? They are denying it, making the matter worse. In one government, two ministers are saying different things on a particular issue, it’s very absurd. I mean, it’s only in Nigeria such can happen. If it’s here in Europe, they will not wait to be told to resign. Since there’s nothing to show, let them climb on the popularity of June 12 to endear to the hearts of the people. Nevertheless, their lack of performance has not taken anything away from June 12. I cherish every minute of that day. As a growing up young man, Abiola was my idol. I’m happy he is being honoured.”
The call for the Federal Government to accord the family of MKO presidential recognition by ensuring that all privileges and rights former presidents and their families enjoy are also given to them was prominent in the reactions of pro-democracy activist and social analyst, Bethel Obinnaya.
Obinnaya insists that it’s not enough to declare a public holiday and celebrate June 12 as democracy day when the man who paid the price was yet to be accorded full recognition.
“If this APC government is sincere with June 12 being our democracy day, they should go beyond mere declaration of public holiday and gathering at the Eagle Square or wherever for parade and speeches. Since they have the power to move democracy day from May 29 to June 12, I believe they also have the power to accord all privileges and rights given to the families of former presidents to Abiola’s family. What is the essence of celebrating June 12 when the family of the man who made the sacrifice is neglected and had not for once, received such a privilege from the Nigerian government? Anything worth doing is worth doing well. I have fact checked since 2018 former President Buhari declared this democracy day, there has not been anything attached to the name of this man to immortalize him safe for the Abuja national stadium. I remember former President Goodluck Jonathan changed University of Lagos to MKO Abiola University, Lagos and some of the people who are spearheading the celebration of June 12 as democracy day rose against it, attacking Jonathan. So, the university was too big to bear the name of our democracy hero, a man whose commitment to the development of our universities and tertiary institutions, students and lecturers was present across the nation. I expect President Bola Tinubu to make pronouncements in these directions. Is it too much an honour to appoint someone from his family a minister? They should answer this question,” he said.
