June 12 A Revolution – Gov Ahmed

Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara State, northcentral Nigeria, has described the June 12, 1993 election won by Chief MKO Abiola as a revolution.

He stated this Thursday at a lecture themed: “June 12: Lessons for Today’s Democracy”, delivered at Oranmiyan Hall, Airport Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, to commemorate the 21st anniversary of the annulment of the election.

At the lecture which was organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Lagos State Council, the governor said Abiola was a hero of democracy and saluted the courage and resilience of those who suffered intimidation and persecution in defence of popular will, saying “the event, no doubt, reminds us to remain vigilant and to be more assertive in our demand for good governance as our country approaches perhaps the most crucial general elections in her chequered history.”

He noted that: “Today, we live in a society where you become a leader not because you come from a certain region of the country or profess a particular religion but because you are imbued with the right measure of leadership skills, understand the challenges confronting our country as well as the concrete pathways to their solution.

“With the nation literarily at war, confronted by record unemployment, disturbing infrastructure decay that questions our place as the world’s sixth largest oil producing nation, a comatose educational system, a hobbled industrial sector, and disenchanted youth, a gathering such as this reminds us of the sacrifices made by those who gave their lives for democracy.”

He said the event was the reminder Nigerians needed to properly appreciate the necessity of uniting as one people, eschewing greed and selfishness, to protect the nation’s democracy and stave off those who lack basic understanding of democratic tenets, and therefore beat the drums of war when faced with electoral defeat.

“June 12 has become a guide to where we are coming from, how we got to where we are today, where we are going and what we need to get there. For the very first time, Nigerians voted massively in a free election, for a Muslim-Muslim ticket, devoid of the parochial sentiments previously associated with elections in the country.

“Outraged by the blatant denial of his popular mandate, Chief Moshood Abiola, in 1994 declared himself the lawful President of Nigeria in the Epetedo area of Lagos Island, an area mainly populated by impoverished Nigerians. Bashorun was promptly declared wanted, accused of treason and arrested on the orders of the Military Head of State, the late General Sani Abacha.

“He was detained for four years, largely in solitary confinement while eminent figures such as the late Pope John Paul II, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and human rights activists from all over the world lobbied for his release.

“Sadly, he passed on in prison on Tuesday 7 July 1998. This in effect rendered Abiola the ceremonial War Viceroy. According to folklore, the Aare Ona Kakanfo is expected to die a warrior in the defence of his nation in order to prove himself in the eyes of both the divine and the mortal as worthy of his title. The late MKO did. He died defending his June12 mandate.”

Ahmed added that “in view of the pivotal place of June 12 elections in our political history, I am still perplexed by the choice of 29 May as Democracy Day. How can this qualify when it barely represents the Nigerian peoples’ revolution, which June 12 was? June 12 was to the Hausa what it was for the Igbo or Yoruba. June 12 soared above religion, tribe, social status, or personal ambition.

“It was the only day Nigerians spoke in one voice, their elemental differences swept aside and forgotten. That day remains the closest we ever came to true nationhood as one mission and vision united our diverse people. This is why I feel very strongly that it is high time this grave error of recognizing May 29 as Democracy Day is corrected.

“Chief Abiola may have died, but he left us with so many lessons. From what democracy truly means, to the power of joining forces, the heroism of courage and the fact that Nigerians can overcome their differences to midwife change.”

He said another strong lesson that we must learn from Abiola’s travails in the quest for democracy was courage; the ability to stand up and fight for one’s rights and beliefs, even at serious personal cost and financial loss.

“In the face of his stolen mandate, Abiola was resolute, not minding the risk to his vast business empire and stupendous wealth. While the military bared its fangs, he refused to recant. MKO stood his ground knowing that power ultimately belonged to the Nigerian masses that after all, voted for him en masse.

“He dared the bullets of the military, announced himself president and fought until the end. The struggle that followed his demise, more than anything else, demonstrated that Nigerians couldn’t be taken for granted by either the military or any civilian dictator for that matter.

“Today, Nigerians from all walks of life have globalised the plight of the innocent Chibok girls even in the face of state-sponsored intimidation and campaigns of calumny.

“Abiola’s death would have been in vain if Nigerians do not demand good governance and stand for the sanctity of their vote at the next elections. This is the highest lesson we can imbibe from his death as a people seeking visionary leadership; one whom we can call our own, because he truly represents our desires and aspirations, and carries our burdens, having emerged from among us. This, in my thinking, is the challenge before us next year.

“June 12 also showed us the consequences of allowing our judiciary to dispense with neutrality and descend into the arena as our courts were manipulated into laying the foundation for the election’s annulment. Going forward therefore, the judiciary must resist any attempt to abuse its processes and procedures in a quest to truncate the people’s will.

“Never again should our courts earn public opprobrium by appearing to shirk their toga of impartiality and condoning judicial abuse by the political class,” he said.

He called on Nigerians to be on the alert ahead of the 2015 elections and show concern about the processes that would guarantee a free and fair election and usher in a leadership that will genuinely transform the lives of our people.

“The June 12 political revolution limited itself to the change of political leadership from the hands of the military to that of their civilian counterparts. But as can be seen, the real revolution is one that involves both political and socio-economic change.

While I am not advocating violent change, I clamour for a peaceful revolution through the free and assertive expression of popular will by all Nigerians. Until the people decide to fight what they do not like, therefore, nothing will happen. Indeed, it was the opposition against the military junta that forced the military to resume the interrupted return to democratic rule and gave us a government we could call our own, however flawed.

“I, therefore, once again urge progressive forces to set aside, like we did on June 12, ethnic differences, religious sentiments and personal ambition to build a new Nigeria, where every citizen has the opportunity to be what they want to be, to earn a decent living and where the elderly, disabled and the unemployed are assisted by the state.

Let us a build a New Nigeria in which governance and prosperity are inclusive. Those who brandish progressive credentials must ensure their conduct does not sully the ethos of the movement which essentially entail purifying and elevating politics and governance.

“Let us come together to build a new Nigeria that will be economically and socially vibrant. Let us be united to build a new Nigeria where preference will be given only to the content of our character and not to parochial considerations.

Our democracy has come of age and Chief MKO has set a standard for us to follow. His soul will truly rest when we walk the path he has shown us,” he said.