Tinubu Reignited Spirit Of June 12 – Sanwo-Olu

Sanwo-Olu noted that the last presidential election, just like in June 1993, de-emphasized the divisive issues of ethnicity and religion in leadership recruitment.

The governor spoke at a ceremony held in Ikeja, by the Alliance for Yoruba Democratic Movements (AYDM) in honour of the late Chief Moshood Abiola — the presumed winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election adjudged to be the freest and fairest process in the nation’s political history.

Represented by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, Sanwo-Olu, said June 12 remained a watershed in the nation’s annals of democratic struggle, noting that citizens’ resistance, spearheaded by the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), came with devastating consequences, of which the late Abiola paid the supreme price.

The governor noted that the ripple aftermath of the military’s opposition to the de-annulment of the election, had devastating effects on the social, economic and political fabric of the country.

He said: “Today, as we celebrate the 30th anniversary of that historic election in the annals of our country, it is proper and necessary to pay glowing tribute to the memories of the symbol of that struggle. Chief MKO Abiola GCFR, his loving wife, the late Alhaja Kudirat Abiola and all those who sacrificed their lives, including those Nigerians who were killed on Ikorodu Road in Lagos.

“We note the indelible efforts of frontline pro-democracy campaigners, both dead and alive, who were thorns in the flesh of the military despots that annulled the common will of the people. Many of these activists tasted brutality from the oppressors but refused to be cowed. Other paid supreme price and laid down their lives for the freedom we enjoy today.

“The victory of President Bola Tinubu and his vice, once again, reignited the spirit of June 12 and the hope it signifies by de-emphasising the divisive issues of ethnicity and religion in leadership recruitment. As we mark this day, I urge all Nigerians to remain steadfast in guarding our democracy as one great people with common destiny. We must keep our hope alive and have faith in the “Renewed Hope” being championed by the new administration.”

Sanwo-Olu noted that Lagos played a symbolic role in the enthronement of democracy and political development in the country, as the state became the epicentre of resistance against military dictatorship and suppression of civil liberties.

The governor said the state offered the platform for the pro-democracy campaigners to launch their activism against the military regime, adding that Lagos would continue to play prominent roles in the sustenance of liberty, constitution and fairness.

“What is most profound about this year’s Democracy Day celebration is the fact that, for the first time since 1999, we now have at the helm of affairs, one of the foremost leaders of the June 12 struggle. As a major player in the journey to enthroning an enduring democracy, rule of law and social justice, President Tinubu will put in his best to fulfil his promises to all Nigerians,” Sanwo-Olu said.