President Buhari’s Recognition Of MKO, A Big Shame On Obasanjo – Lekan Abiola

Mr. Lekan Abiola is one of the sons of the late Moshood Abiola, the acclaimed winner of the June 12, 1993, presidential election which was annulled by the military regime of General Ibrahim Babangida.

He told Eric Dumo what the recognition of that date as Nigeria’s Democracy Day by President Muhammadu Buhari means to the family

Some people have said that the recognition of June 12 as Nigeria’s Democracy Day by President Muhammadu Buhari in honor of your late father, MKO Abiola, was just to score some political point ahead of the 2019 elections, do you share this view?

I think that what President Muhammadu Buhari has done is a move long overdue. The democracy we have in Nigeria today was watered by the blood of a lot of people, including my father, MKO Abiola, and mother, Kudirat.

For President Buhari to finally recognize June 12 as Democracy Day is wonderful and we are happy about it.

However, we are hoping that he would be declared as a former president of Nigeria. If he was conferred with the highest honor in the country, the GCFR, which is only bestowed on presidents, then I think he should be declared as one.

We also want all the rights and privileges of a former president accorded to him. Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, benefitted so much from my father and had the chance to do this but refused to do so.

We, therefore, thank President Buhari for finally honoring our father.

Do you think that President Buhari’s action might have been calculated to spite Obasanjo?

Obasanjo is from the same hometown with my father and they even went to the same school. For him not to have given my father that honor is a shame on him.

Nigeria belongs to every one of us. Since Obasanjo refused to do what was right, God had raised somebody to do it. Now, the whole thing is a shame on him knowing that he is from the same town with my father and he had the chance to honor him as well.

Do you think there must have been a grudge between your father and Obasanjo and perhaps that is why he refused to accord him that honor?

When my father was alive, he always visited Obasanjo at his house while he also came to visit my father at our place. They had a very close relationship.

When Obasanjo was contesting for the United Nations Secretary-General position, I remember my father working very hard to ensure his emergence.

He traveled to all kinds of places to lobby people on his behalf, so I don’t know when this sudden enmity started. My father is late now; maybe Obasanjo can give an answer to that.

He was president of Nigeria for eight years and a great beneficiary of MKO’s kindness yet he could not honor him in any way. Obasanjo always visited our house where my late mother would make ‘amala’ for him to eat.

This same woman got shot for the sake of democracy and for the eight years you were president, you couldn’t even mention her name or honor her in any way. This is really sad.

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