The news of the resurgence of June 12 jolted many like a thunderbolt. The more antagonists of June 12 thought they had finally nailed and buried what the date represents, the more its ghost continue to further hunt and prick their conscience.
Several calls for the immortalization of Chief MKO Abiola, the acclaimed winner of the June 12 election, were continually rebuffed. Same goes for the calls to recognize June 12 as the nation’s official Democracy Day.
But like it is often said, truth is constant. Though it can be suppressed for quite a while, it cannot be permanently obliterated. Truth has a way of coming back. Over the ages, ruthless men have variously tried to repress the truth. Some murdered those they thought hold the key to the truth. Others proscribed mediums they believed could help in preserving the truth while others did everything they could to silence the voices of truth. But then, historically, conspiracies against the truth have always failed woefully.
In the annals of our country’s political history, June 12 remains a watershed. That is the truth that many do not want to hear. But then, truth does not become truth because it is validated by man. No matter the depth of denials, truth remains truth. No more, no less.
The truth is that, no matter how hard its opponents try, for many reasons, June 12 will continue to be a watershed in the annals of our nation’s political history. It was the day that Nigerians redefined and reshaped the nation’s political scenery. Prior to that time, our politics sharply reflected our palpable religious and ethnic divides. But on June 12, all that changed. Chief MKO Abiola, who was the presidential candidate of the defunct SDP, had more votes in the northern part of the country than Alhaji Bashir Tofa, his northern challenger from the defunct NRC.
One other remarkable feature of the June 12 election is the electorate disposition to religious sentiments and concerns. In 1993, the defunct SDP was bold and daring in its conviction that fielding a Muslim-Muslim ticket (Abiola and Kingibe) would not jeopardise its electoral success. The party went ahead with its conviction and recorded a resounding success at the polls. But for the annulment of the poll’s result, such audacity could have effectively checkmated religious contemplations in our political scene.
Now, the resurgence of June 12 should draw attention to certain fundamental issues that need to be critically addressed in our nation. One is the need to banish ethnic and religious sentiments from our body politics. This is a fundamental lesson from June 12. Closely tied to this is the need to always ensure that future elections in the country are free, fair and credible. June 12 election has been adjudged as one of the freest in the country. Perhaps, that is why its ghost has continued to hunt its adversaries.
Equally, it is important, at least for the sake of posterity that Prof Humphrey Nwosu, the Chief umpire of the election comes out to give the true picture of what transpired, especially leading to the annulment. At what point was he prevailed upon to annul the election? Who were those that tried to suppress the voice of the people? Why has he kept silence for so long? Perhaps, more importantly, there is a need to have an official release of the complete result of that historic election.
Furthermore, it is imperative to further propel the wheel of justice as evidenced in the posthumous honours bestowed on Chief Abiola and Chief Gani Fawehinmi, a leading pro June 12 voice. Those who conspired to ‘kill’ the people’s mandate must be made to face justice. The truth is that evil triumphs in any society where evil continually goes unpunished. Those
Also, it is imperative for political leaders across the country to always weigh the future import of their actions, especially as it concerns posterity. Only God knows how the man that annulled the June 12 election and his collaborators would be feeling right now. Right in his lifetime, a significant step is being taken to redress an injustice he perpetrated. The political class, at all levels, must take a cue from this in all they do.
When he wrote In Julius Ceaser that the evil that men do live after them, legendary Writer, Williams Shakespeare, was alluding to the fact that evil deeds in history are often more easily remembered than the good ones. A cursory dip into any history book will confirm this. In Julius Ceaser, one of the purposes of Mark Antony’s speech is to mitigate any evils that Caesar may have committed while highlighting the good that he did.
INow is the time to unravel some of the mysteries associated with the June 12, 1993 election. We really need get closer to the truth behind the story of June 12!
Tayo Ogunbiyi
Ogunbiyi is of the Lagos State Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja
