The Pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, on Tuesday, said declaring of the late winner of the annulled June 12, 1993, presidential election, Chief MKO Abiola, as President post-humously was long overdue.
Afenifere’s National Publicity Secretary, Justice Faloye, stated this in an interview with The PUNCH, backing an earlier call on Tuesday by Senator Orji Kalu from Abia State.
“We support the proposal. We actually discussed and came to the same resolution in our monthly meeting held on Tuesday.
“(Former President Muhammadu) Buhari had already given Abiola a GCFR (Grand Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic) award, which is meant only for Presidents. If Tinubu could go further, it would be a welcome rectification of a historic political injustice,” the Afenifere chieftain said.
Earlier on Tuesday in Abuja, Kalu, representing Abia North Senatorial District, called on President Bola Tinubu to declare Abiola Nigeria’s President posthumously, as a mark of honour to the winner of the June 12, 1933, presidential election.
Kalu’s call comes days after ex-military President, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, admitted that Abiola won the 1999 presidential election, which has been adjudged the freest in Nigeria’s history.
Babangida made the admission last week during the launch of his autobiography titled, ‘A Journey in Service,’ 32 years after the election was annulled.
On June 12, 2018, immediate-past Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari conferred the highest honour, the Grand Commander of the Federal Republic, on the late Abiola, a move that was applauded by pro-democracy advocates across the world.
While addressing journalists at the National Assembly Complex on Tuesday, Kalu, a former governor of Abia State, said Abiola’s feat should not be consigned to the dustbin of history and called on President Tinubu to act where his predecessors failed.
He said, “Yes, Abiola won the election. And I will say President Tinubu should declare him a President posthumously.”
Kalu lauded the actions of former President Buhari for conferring a posthumous national honour on Abiola but stressed that further recognition was necessary.
“Since Abiola won, his picture should be placed among Nigeria’s past Presidents. I commend former President Buhari for giving him a national honour, but I also appeal to President Tinubu to officially recognise him and place his image where it belongs. This would help bring succour to his family.”
Giving his opinion on Babangida’s memoirs released last week, Kalu tasked the ex-military tactician to come up with a second volume, noting that a single volume was not enough to tell Babangida’s story.
“I look forward to the second edition of Babangida’s book because the first did not reveal all the realities. I was present during the events of June 12, and I know what happened. Babangida should call out the names of those responsible for preventing the election’s declaration,” Kalu said.
He dismissed the ethnic tag attributed to the 1996 coup led by the late Major Kaduna Nzeogwu, saying, “The coup in question was not an Igbo coup; it was a Nigerian coup, executed by the military.”
In what appeared his endorsement of Tinubu for a fresh four-year tenure in the next election cycle, Kalu said, “Yes, Asiwaju will win in 2027. Asiwaju should continue.”
He further argued that history had shown that even Presidents accused of non-performance returned for a second term in office, urging Nigerians to remain patient with Tinubu’s reform agenda.
Expressing confidence in Tinubu’s chances, Senator Kalu stated, “We are appealing to Nigerians to be patient with the reform process. We are not looking for another presidential candidate outside our party. We are fully aligned with our democratic principles and we are supporting the sitting president.
“The good news is that we will win again in 2027. The President will return, and Nigerians will celebrate with us. That is inevitable.”
Meanwhile, a human rights activist, Mashood Erubami, also called on President Tinubu to officially recognise Abiola as the rightful winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election and ensure that Abiola’s portrait is henceforth displayed alongside past Presidents in government offices.
In a statement on Tuesday, Erubami stressed the urgency of this recognition, citing Babangida’s recent admission that he wrongly annulled the June 12 election.
“The current President, having heard directly from the man who annulled the June 12 election—who has now publicly admitted to subversion—should be emboldened to declare Chief MKO Abiola as the rightful and globally accepted winner of the election,” Erubami stated.
“His portrait should thereafter be appropriately placed among those of past presidents in state and national government offices, serving as a testament to his victory and to the unwavering struggle of Nigerians for the de-annulment of the election.”
(Punch)
