Annulment of Abiola’s Victory Ruined Nigeria’s Democratic Values, Says Ojo

A Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress(APC) in Ekiti State, Engr. Kayode Ojo, has declared that the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election supposedly won by a business mogul, Chief MKO Abiola derailed the country’ programmes toward making Nigeria a strong democratic nation.

Specifically Ojo said the country would have been strong politically with all institutions working as stipulated by laws, if the military regime of Gen Ibrahim Babangida had allowed Abiola’s
victory to subsist as expressed in the by Nigerians in the poll.

Babangida had nullified the outcome of the election won by Abiola, the then candidate of the Social Democratic Party(SDP), who trounced Alhaji Basir Tofa of the National Republican Convention (NRC) in the keenly contested poll.

Ojo in a statement in Ado Ekiti, on Monday, disclosed that the Nigeria’s democracy cannot be said to be infallible but added that the country could have developed better and would have by now gained global recognition if the election was not annulled.

“On account of the importance of this day, June 12 should be declared a National day in the Nigeria historical calendar so as to celebrate the effort of the main actors of that election particularly Chief MKO Abiola in unifying Nigerians from all works of life, social strata,
tribes and ethnic enclave towards embracing unity in realising the Nigerian project.

“Whenever the thought of June 12 comes to mind, With nostalgia it reflects two significant events that have shapened the Nigeria socio-political landscape and could have served as a modern democratic template for the whole of Africa while Nigeria plays it’s role as the
centrepiece of Africa’s foreign policy”, he said.

The governorship aspirant said the outcome of the election showed lucidly that the country could overcome its seeming ethnic disunity if the influential individuals stop fueling crises that could create unnecessary cleavage among the diverse ethnic groups.

He however saluted Abiola’s courage in standing against military oppression , saying the federal government must look for ways to recognize the late business mogul to calm down frayed nerves.

According to him, the circumstance leading to Abiola’s death was controversial and still reflected the impression that certain ethnic group is dominating the politics of this nation, saying this impression must be erased with certain steps being taken by government to heal old wounds.

The APC Chieftain added that the FG must learn from past and also return the country to the path of sanity when Nigerian always voted without recourse to primordial sentiments of
ethnic and religious inclinations of the contestants.