…As pro-democracy activists regale, eugolise Tinubu’s presidency

Tomorrow, 30 years ago, the election touted to be Nigeria’s freest and most credible in its electoral history was annulled by then military President Ibrahim Babangida.

Indeed, the June 12, 1993, presidential election, was won by the late Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola.

As the anniversary comes up tomorrow, part of the significance of this year’s celebration is the uniqueness of having one of the arrowheads of the defunct pro-democracy group, the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), which spearheaded the struggle for the enthronement of the present democratic governance,  Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

As with Abiola/Babagana Kingibe Muslim-Muslim ticket of the defunct Social Democratic Coalition (SDP), Tinubu/Kashim Shettima same faith ticket presented by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the just concluded presidential election again re-enacted the fond memory of the annulled 1993 presidential election with two Muslims  emerging president and vice president.

While legal fireworks are still ongoing at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal over the result of the last election, Tinubu already has his own place among the pantheon of heroes of democracy in Nigeria.

History is replete with his ordeals and travails during the ensuing social unrest and the struggles that culminated in the arrest of Abiola and while the late General Sani Abacha lasted in office.

Following the annulment of the June 12 presidential election and the resultant imbroglio, Tinubu enlisted as a founding member of NADECO which mobilized support for the restoration of democracy and declaration of Abiola as the winner. While the struggle lasted, he literally became a thorn in the flesh of the military government before he subsequently went into exile in 1994 and later returned to the country after the death of the late maximum ruler, General Sani Abacha, whose incident ushered in a transition to civilian rule on May 29, 1999.   

Though the commemoration of the sad event had become an annual ritual since 2000 in the six states of the Southwest, it was not until 2019 that former President Muhammadu Buhari officially recognized the significance of June 12 in the nation’s history and designated it as Nigeria’s Democracy Day.

On Monday, the spirit of June 12 will come alive again. And Tinubu as president would lead the charge.

However, debate is still raging as to whether or not the country’s democracy is on the right track, especially given the controversy trailing the February 25, 2023 presidential election result which is now being challenged in court by the two leading opposition candidates – Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Labour Party respectively.

Consequently, the voice of pro-democracy groups came alive again.   

Reacting, Dr. Tunji Abayomi, a renowned constitutional lawyer, and pro-democracy fighter, simply dismissed the negative commentaries coming from the opposition, arguing that “democracy is not perfect and it has never been perfect anywhere in the world. But it keeps evolving and it will continue to evolve.”

He maintained the view that Tinubu’s presidency would make a huge difference from the past leaders who did not contribute anything to the struggle for the enthronement of the current democratic governance, but emerged on the political scene by accident of circumstance.

“I believe that our democratic journey is on course. Considering all that went into the last election, in my view, this nation is moving forward. In spite of the imperfection of our electoral system, the evolvement of our leaders is still a result of the votes of the people.

“First, democracy has made it possible for one of the precursors and field marshals of democracy to emerge as the president democratically. And considering the president’s commitment to democracy and the end we all sought, which is to improve the well-being of the people, I believe his leadership will be different from the past leaders.

“If you look at it, from Shagari to Obasanjo, Musa Yar’Adua to Goodluck Jonathan, and then to Muhammadu Buhari, not one of them partook in the struggle for democracy. And sometimes you wonder if they understand what went into it. But now, we now have someone who was a partaker in the struggle. I believe that our democratic journey is on course. I expect that we will see greater development in the years ahead because the focus now will be on the people.

“What we need to advance now is to increase the benefits of democracy for the people because the hope of the people is that democracy will bring a better life. And you can see this in what the wife of the President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, said that the happiness of Nigeria and Nigerians is the major concern of the administration and that they don’t need the money of Nigeria to live. I believe that the combination of the president and the minds of the government under his command will continue to improve the nation.

“Democracy is not perfect and it has never been perfect anywhere in the world. But it keeps evolving and it will continue to evolve,” he posited.

Further stressing the relative significance of the June 12, 1993 election vis-à-vis February 25, 2023 presidential poll, he noted that Tinubu’s victory had again debased the public sentiment and exaggeration about the same faith ticket as a mere political tool being used by the elite to achieve their political end.   

“The issue of the Muslim-Muslim ticket is the problem of the elite. Ordinary Nigerian is interested in employment, food security, human security, education, etcetera; he doesn’t care whether these are brought about by a Muslim, a Christian, or a non-believer.

“In my view, the question of whether the president is a Muslim or a Christian is irrelevant because there is freedom of religion in our constitution. If you say a state must not have a religion, why are we talking of Muslim or Christian religion? There are people who are not Muslims or Christians, but they worship the god of our ancestors. Are they not Nigerians? Is the President not responsible to them? It is wrong for us to focus on religion when we should be focusing on the capacity of a man who wants to lead us,” Abayomi added.

An elated former leader of the NUPENG, Chief Frank Kokori, who has already been conscripted into the preparatory arrangements for the celebration as a frontline pro-democracy leader, described the new administration of President Tinubu as the dawn of a new era.

Adding his voice to the raging debate in a telephone conversation with Sunday Sun, he said: “This is going to be a perfect celebration. It is going to be a landmark celebration because it is now 30 years since June 12 was annulled. Tinubu was an active participant in the struggle for the enthronement of the current democratic governance. He was in the trenches with us in different ways. So, we are happy that we are celebrating the struggle. Already, I have been given an important role to play in the celebration.”

While lamenting the disappointing experience of democratic governance under successive leaders since 1999, Kokori expressed confidence that Tinubu would perform better than his previous predecessors, adding that he had started well with his policy on subsidy removal.    

His words: “From 1999 till present, I have been disappointed in Nigeria’s democracy because those of us who led the struggle never came to the corridors of power.

“With all sense of modesty, I was the arrowhead of the struggle for democracy in Nigeria. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo was not a pro-democracy activist, Yar’Adua wasn’t a pro-democracy activist, Goodluck Jonathan wasn’t a pro-democracy activist, Muhammadu Buhari wasn’t a pro-democracy activist. So, this is the first time we are having a pro-democracy activist who participated in the struggle for the restoration of democracy.

“Tinubu suffered deprivation just like some of us. Like I said without being immodest, I with my NUPENG was the arrowhead of the struggle. We were deprived, we were jailed and we suffered. I spent four solid years in solitary confinement. Being alive today and seeing that Tinubu is the president is a thing of joy for some of us in that struggle. And I am confident that he will make a lot of difference. I am only praying that God should continue to strengthen him and his health because as we are aging we are losing a lot of power, but the wisdom is always there. So, he will surround himself with competent people. Already, he has started well, which is why I was totally against the NLC for its call for a national strike before it was later called off. We are expecting a better country from Tinubu’s presidency.

“All of us who participated had been shutout of power. Those who took over power after the military didn’t know how it came about, so they floundered in that struggle for democracy. And that is why Nigeria is where it is today. We have retrogressed these past 24 years. Politicians have messed up our democracy.

“Until now, only a handful of the privileged ones, less than 00.1 per cent, are the people who have cornered the wealth of this nation through the illegal acquisition of wealth like this fuel subsidy which goes into the wrong pocket.       

“Thank God, we now have a man like Tinubu. We pray he will do well. Our only prayer now is that Tinubu who was part of that struggle will make a difference. And I believe he will do well. I have told him that history will put him on the wrong side of history if he fails.”

As Abayomi did say, Kokori also dismissed as unfounded the fear of religious domination being expressed by those opposed to the same faith ticket, saying: “What we want is good governance because the governor or president can come from your village and your village will not have water or electricity.

“The question of Muslim-Muslim ticket depends on an individual. Abiola wasn’t a religious bigot, his running mate, Kingibe, is also not a religious fundamentalist. As much as I know, President Tinubu and his vice, Kashim Shettima, too are also not religious fundamentalists. The issue of religion is overplayed in Nigeria.”

On the issue of the credibility of the process, he declared the last presidential election as the best Nigeria has had in the recent past.

“This 2023 election is the best Nigeria has ever had. Forget the hues and cry about rigging, it is just a political sentiment. Without the introduction of BVAS and the use of card readers, how could Peter Obi have come up with the kind of result he scored in the last election, defeating the sitting governors in their states? It has never happened in the history of Nigeria.

“Even though Obi is crying, God has favoured him. If not, how can his Labour Party win the number of Senate and House of Representatives seats? In my constituency here in Delta State, he had no agent, but he won because the youth felt that Atiku and Tinubu are old generation candidates. He won because of BVAS. But instead of being grateful to God because of the development, he is busy crying about rigging. He has no presence in the whole of the North. So, how can he win?

“Tinubu would have done better if not for the Muslim-Muslim ticket. But without that, he would have lost the election. For me, our democracy is evolving. We are developing. For the first time, we are having almost seven parties in the National Assembly. Forget about all the sentiments and emotional outbursts about what happened during the last election, this is the best election Nigeria has ever seen after the Abiola election which was the product of Option A4,” he quipped.

Similarly, Senator Gbenga Obadara, lending his voice on a positive note, said: “I believe the time has come to lead Nigeria out of its present quagmire.”

Being part of the Tinubu campaign organization, he could not but betray his emotion with a deep sense of fulfillment, saying, “To God be the glory, we are alive witnessing the new democratic dispensation. We are getting matured democratically in this country. Who would have thought that Muslim-Muslim will fly again in Nigeria with what happened 30 years ago? It has shown that what Nigeria needs is competence and capability. With competence and capacity, we will be choosing the best of our team to work for the progress of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

‘The significance of this year’s celebration is that the man who won the last election was an active player in the NADECO struggling for the enthronement of democratic governance in the country. God has really blessed Nigeria by putting him at the helm of the affair of the country.

“It was the active role he played in the struggle for democracy that inspired those of us in the South West Agenda (SWAGA) to beckon on him (Tinubu) to come out for presidency and he accepted. With Tinubu’s emergence as President, I believe the time has come to lead Nigeria out of its present quagmire. And I know that God doesn’t make mistakes. We just need to exercise patience to see more dividends of democracy as we progress in our aspiration for good governance. I am confident that Nigeria will be better for it. 

“You cannot underscore the significance of BVAS in our electoral system. Before the introduction of the new voting technology, rigging and snatching of ballot boxes were the order of the day. But nobody can snatch ballot boxes any longer. So, it can only get better.”