The 29th anniversary of Nigeria’s freest and fairest election, as well as the fourth commemoration of Democracy Day since President Muhammadu Buhari moved it from May 29 to honour the late Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola, was celebrated yesterday.
On June 12, notable Nigerians such as Nobel Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka, Senator Shehu Sani, Peter Obi, and Mike Ozekhome emphasised the importance of making democracy work for everyone, urging leaders to abandon divisive tendencies for the country’s progress.
They spoke at the annual June 12 memorial, titled “Lessons from Hope ’93 and June 12 Elections as Safeguards for Nigeria’s Future Democracy.”
Soyinka, who was represented by Prof. Pat Utomi, stated that the current form of democracy in Nigeria is ineffective and unappealing to citizens.
He stated that it is Nigerians’ responsibility to repair democracy and make it work, regardless of ethnicity, religion, or tribe.
“For us to build true democracy, we need an alternative to what exists in the current political class,” Soyinka continued. Nigerians must not continue to allow their oppressors to divide their country.”
Sani, for one, believes that President Buhari’s recognition of MKO Abiola is a foundation that needs to be built upon by whoever wins the presidential election next year.
He bemoaned the fact that the country was under siege by terrorists, who had made life unbearable for the people and signalled a leadership failure.
Obi praised Abiola for his service to Nigeria and urged Nigerians to consider their visions for a better country.
“It is time for us as Nigerians to reflect and examine our lives and ask ourselves questions like: what did he (Abiola) sacrifice for, and where are we now?” We don’t get the best, we get the worst; I’m just here in remembrance, and I’m taking this opportunity to call on all of us who are still in politics to commit ourselves to the people,” Obi said.
Iba Gani Adams, a member of the Yoruba socio-political group Afenifere and Aare Onakakanfo of Yoruba Land, bemoaned the state of affairs in the country 23 years after achieving democratic governance.
In separate statements made available to The Guardian, the duo expressed their dissatisfaction with the country’s apparent reversal of fortunes since 1999.
Comrade Jare Ajayi, Afenifere’s National Publicity Secretary, expressed regret that Nigeria is far worse now than it was at the start of the fourth republic.
Poor leadership, a degraded political class, the enthronement of corruption, a lack of respect for the rule of law, and a disregard for institutions established to ensure the smooth running of society are all factors, according to him.
The group pointed out that President Buhari’s Democracy Day speech on Sunday painted a picture of everything running smoothly, despite the fact that the opposite is true.
“For example, he stated that he is ‘living with the grief and worry of all victims and detainees of terrorism and kidnapping,’ and that his government is ‘working hard to contain and address these challenges.’ The unprecedented fatal attack on St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State last week Sunday, and the killing of 32 people and kidnapping of over 40 people a few days later in Kaduna State, demonstrate how effective the government’s efforts have been.
“In fact, it appears that the deeper the country sinks, particularly in terms of security and socioeconomic conditions, the more assurances we receive from the government.” Assurances that don’t match reality.”
“For the sinking boat to be rescued, for democracy to be beneficial to the people, for the increasing insecurity to be stemmed,” Afenifere suggested, “government should do the following, among others: immediately allow states that so desire to establish their own police force; combat corruption decisively with a view to plugging leaking holes in government purses and energising the economy; equip security agencies and boost the morale of security personnel;
According to Adams, Nigeria’s democracy has yet to fulfil the late Abiola’s expectations, given the current state of the country. He said Abiola’s victory in the 1993 elections came with a lot of sacrifices, speaking at a commemoration in Ikeja, Lagos.
“In terms of nature, the June 12 story was truly phenomenal. It was a story that reflected the people’s desire to take control of their own fates. It was a triumph that transcended tribes and religions. Aare Abiola, the presumed winner and my predecessor, became a symbol of the historic victory that brought democracy to Nigeria.
“The election’s annulment served as a sombre reminder of those years of struggle. It was a battle between right and wrong. The Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) was founded in 1994 as a result of that struggle.”
Prof. Ayo Olukotun of Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Department Iwoye’s of Political Science, reiterated the importance of regionalism, insisting that Nigeria’s problem can only be solved if all of the country’s regions are allowed to develop at their own pace.
“Right now, we’re feeding bottle federalism.” As a result, Nigeria has embarked on a race to the bottom.
As a result, we would have progressed from this journey if Abiola’s memory was truly honoured. In his lifetime, the late Abiola had a clear understanding of what Nigerians desired. Nigeria would have turned out to be a country that we can all be proud of if he hadn’t been martyred. As a result, unless Nigeria returns to the fundamental reason for its founding, the country’s dreams may be a mirage, according to Olutokun.
President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) have been charged by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to take concrete steps to promote democracy and its benefits in Nigeria. “The APC administration has arrogantly continued to violate and trample on the substance, value, and quintessence of June 12 Democracy Day; the democratic principles of Constitutional Order, freedom, justice, fairness, and equity, as well as the much-desired national cohesion and tolerance, which Abiola personified and died for,” the PDP said in a statement signed by its national publicity secretary, Debo Ologunagba.
“June 12 embodies Nigerians’ struggle against corrupt, oppressive, and dictatorial forces; against lawless, insensitive, anti-people, and terrorism-promoting regimes; against injustice, high-handedness, recklessness, and incurable impunity,” according to the PDP.
The opposition party urged Nigerians to use June 12th as Democracy Day to reaffirm their commitment to voting out the anti-democratic, inhumane, lawless, and rudderless APC in the general elections of 2023.
President Buhari was also urged by the party to go beyond his usual rhetoric and take concrete steps to ensure free, fair, and transparent elections in 2023.
Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the governor of Lagos State, has also stated that Nigeria’s democracy is based on the enormous sacrifice that June 12 represented and continues to represent.
Sanwo-Olu noted in a statement commemorating the June 12 anniversary that Lagos was the epicentre of national protests and activism following the annulment of the election. “Lagosians came out in droves, young and old, male and female, to make their voices heard and to oppose forces that sought to deny Nigerians their democratic right to choose their president.”
“Abiola was a Nigerian who lived and worked in Lagos. His business empire was also based in this city. The famous Epetedo Declaration, which was Abiola’s final public appearance, was broadcast around the world from Lagos. In Lagos, he was also apprehended.
“In fact, regardless of where they traced their ethnic or family origins, many of the leading names of the June 12 struggle were Lagosians.” Lagos was the scene of much of the bloodshed. Murderous enemies of true democracy shot and killed Kudirat Abiola, Alfred Rewane, and Sola Omatsola in Lagos. Many others were forced underground, where they lived in disguise and ran from safe house to safe house across the city.”
Sanwo-Olu stated that Nigerians have witnessed democracy in action, noting that while it is not perfect, no democracy is. He went on to say that while there are still gaps to be filled and processes to be improved, “the journey that began over two decades ago is fully on track and maturing.”
AN ELDER statesman, Malam Tanko Yakassai, has stated that Nigerians should rejoice over the return to democratic rule. In an interview with The Guardian, he stated that those in charge of the country’s leadership must do more to ensure that Nigerians benefit from the dividends of democracy.
“This is just the beginning,” he said. In terms of dividends to Nigerians and infrastructure development, we haven’t been able to match our siblings Korea and Indonesia. We have a lot more work to do because we are so far behind. The good news is that we have moved on from the dark days of military dictatorships. At the very least, it’s something to rejoice over.
“It’s a remembrance of an event as well as a reminder of the significance of our history.” People should understand why it is significant because it was a struggle to end military rule in Nigeria. The goal has been accomplished.
“We are now living in a fully democratic society.” For the first time, major political parties have no candidates with a military background. The country now has a fully established democracy. I implore politicians to ensure that this experiment receives all necessary support in order to achieve our country’s goal of long-term democracy.”
“June 12 1993 is a watershed in our liberal democracy, which bid farewell to the military, birthed the zoning convention of president rotation from North to South, and created the material conditions for a multiparty system and free, fair, and transparent elections, which has strengthened our democratic institutions,” said Osita Okechukwu, APC chieftain and Director General Voice of Nigeria (VON). One salutes Muammar Gaddafi and all the fallen heroes for paying the ultimate and supreme price for democracy.
MKO Abiola’s family yesterday urged the Federal Government to carry out the late politician’s manifesto and help less fortunate Nigerians. Murtala Abiola, the head of the Abiola family, made the call while speaking with reporters at the family compound in Gbagura, Abeokuta, Ogun State, during the annual prayer session for the winner of the 1993 presidential election.
According to the family head, Abiola’s ‘Farewell to Poverty’ manifesto provided a solution for providing assistance to students, the unemployed, and the elderly in Nigeria. According to him, as part of efforts to eradicate poverty in the country, allowances for students and the unemployed were included.
“Nigeria’s money belongs to everyone in Nigeria, whether Igbo, Hausa, or Yoruba, and everyone must benefit from it,” he said.
“As a senior citizen, they will take me to an old people’s home if I leave Nigeria tonight and arrive in the United States.” They will look after my medical needs as well as my feeding. They will take care of the funeral even if I die and no one claims my body.
In Nigeria, all of these programmes should be made available. We all travel abroad to see what is available, but finding it difficult to replicate it when we return home.
“All of the funds end up in their (political class’s) pockets.” The money will run out, and he who is keeping it will run out as well.”
Prof. Jehu Onyekwere Nnaji, a professor of International Law and Global Politics, has claimed that democracy in Nigeria is still lopsided due to the country’s homogeneous nature, claiming that 23 years later, a few individuals largely determine the fate of the people.
Dr. John Nwobodo, the Accord Party’s governorship candidate in Enugu State in the 2023 general elections, has also stated that Nigeria’s 23 years of democracy have fallen short of the people’s expectations.
In an interview with The Guardian in Enugu, Nnaji, a PDP governorship candidate, insisted that the democratic anomaly was so complex that the citizenry’s political future was inextricably linked and determined by the whims and caprices of a few individuals.
He said that despite a large amount of money injected into the system, the various institutions in the country had not shown stronger signs of growth.
“Despite the fact that the newly amended Electoral Act of 2022 allows for direct, indirect, and consensus candidacies, no political party sought to use direct primaries because doing so would take power away from those who impose candidates of their choice,” he continued. This is incompatible with good democratic ideals and with the importance of democracy.
“Democracy is derived from a loose combination of two Greek words, Demos and Kratos, where Demos refers to the people and Kratos refers to rule, resulting in the phrase “People’s Rule.”
In the South-South geopolitical zone, Prince Ned Nwoko, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for Delta North senatorial district, stated unequivocally: “Nigeria is currently in a state of anarchy and hopelessness; thus, nothing is working today in a democratic country like ours.”
“What we have on the ground are certainly not democratic definitions, as the two processes – elections and resource distribution to the people – have been jeopardised and traumatised.”
Mr. Tony Ezeagwu, Chairman of the Delta State Labour Party (LP), believes that democracy is blossoming, despite the fact that the country has yet to get it completely right, due to the type of leadership enthroned in the country over the years.
“I’m confident that Nigeria will get it right someday, because democracy has been stabilised to some extent, except that the right people are not in the right places.”
Prince Adewole Adebayo, a presidential candidate for the Social Democratic Party (SDP), lamented that democracy had gotten off track, but quickly added that it could be righted and put back on track next year “if both the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the PDP are voted out, without allowing any of their stray members masquerading as alternatives or Third Force.”
Rt. Rev. Nneoyi Egbe, Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Calabar, said Nigeria has deteriorated on many fronts in the last 23 years of democracy. He claimed that the country has focused on developing stronger individuals rather than institutions.
According to him, democratic rule is on the way, but not democracy in practise, but recent events have shown that Nigerians are becoming more enlightened and gradually moving toward salvaging the country.
Egbe, who emphasised the importance of consciously driving a vision that ensures institutions are larger than individuals by doing the right thing, urged Nigerians to do the right thing by getting their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) ready to vote and participate in the counting process.
