June 12: Nigeria Still Searching For True Democracy 29 Years After — Afe Babalola

Senior advocate and founder of Afe Babalola University, Aare Afe
Babalola, said on Friday that true democracy was still elusive in
Nigeria 28 years after the June 12, 1993, election, believed to
have been won by Chief Moshood Abiola, was annulled by the
military.

Babalola who recalled the day the issue of June 12 was finally
put to rest in the court, in view of a one-sheet gazette presented
by the government’s lawyer, described it as “the saddest day for
the Judiciary in our country” and “the beginning of a journey the
end of which nobody knows.”

The elder statesman, who was Abiola’s lawyer in the case, said
in a statement titled, ‘June 12, whether Abiola died in vain or
not: Time will tell,’ that the ghost of the annulment of the
election had continued to haunt Nigeria as he questioned whether
the declaration of June 12 as Democracy Day by the President, Major
Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd), had achieved any result or not.

He said, “The man (Abiola) went through an election and to get a
judgment, he was sent out of the court with a gazette that the
election has been annulled. But I added a prophetic statement then
that “this is the beginning of a journey the end of which nobody
knows”.

“Today, many years after that prophetic statement, Nigeria is
still on the search for true democracy which began on June 12,
1993. Nigeria had been denied true democracy and until we have
democracy properly, the journey which began with the annulment of
late Abiola’s election of June 12, 1993, will remain
uncompleted”.

Babalola, who said that democracy thrived on three pillars –
Executive, Legislative and Judiciary, regretted that it had not
been well with none of the three arms, hence the need “to take
steps to prevent the country from total collapse by immediately
addressing the critically important issue of National Conference to
draft a peoples’ Federal Constitution similar to 1963 Constitution
based on Parliamentary System of Government.”

He said, “For many months, Nigeria’s Judiciary existed only in
name. The courts were paralysed by a nationwide strike by JUSUN.
For the first time, all the courts in the country were shut
down.

“The compliance of the workers was that Judiciary lacks
autonomy. This fundamental issue remains unaddressed even with the
calling off of the industrial action by JUSUN. Up till now, the
Legislative and the Executive Arms have not addressed the issue
satisfactorily.

“The Legislature, which is the second arm of government in
democracy, has failed to enact a law to constitute a National
Conference to fashion out a true Federal Constitution to replace
the 1999 Military/Unitary Constitution foisted on Nigerians when
the Military was vacating the reign of governance in 1999.
Recently, it has spent billions of Naira merely to invite Nigerians
to discuss a mere amendment to the 1999 Constitution which is the
root cause of Nigeria’s problems today.

“The Presidency is engulfed in a serious battle with insecurity
by way of Boko Haram, bandits, kidnapping, armed robbery, burglary,
armed herdsmen who roam about the farmlands – killing and
destroying farm products.

“The Naira has depreciated to an all-time low while many farmers
have abandoned their farms due to rampaging cattle rearers and
kidnappers. Many schools have had to close down due to the ogre of
kidnapping.

“Finally, one may ask whether the declaration of June 12 as
Democracy Day by the Federal Government has so far yielded any
result and whether Abiola died in vain or not? Time will tell,”
Babalola said.

Senior advocate and founder of Afe Babalola University, Aare Afe
Babalola, said on Friday that true democracy was still elusive in
Nigeria 28 years after the June 12, 1993, election, believed to
have been won by Chief Moshood Abiola, was annulled by the
military.

Babalola who recalled the day the issue of June 12 was finally
put to rest in the court, in view of a one-sheet gazette presented
by the government’s lawyer, described it as “the saddest day for
the Judiciary in our country” and “the beginning of a journey the
end of which nobody knows.”

The elder statesman, who was Abiola’s lawyer in the case, said
in a statement titled, ‘June 12, whether Abiola died in vain or
not: Time will tell,’ that the ghost of the annulment of the
election had continued to haunt Nigeria as he questioned whether
the declaration of June 12 as Democracy Day by the President, Major
Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd), had achieved any result or not.

He said, “The man (Abiola) went through an election and to get a
judgment, he was sent out of the court with a gazette that the
election has been annulled. But I added a prophetic statement then
that “this is the beginning of a journey the end of which nobody
knows”.

“Today, many years after that prophetic statement, Nigeria is
still on the search for true democracy which began on June 12,
1993. Nigeria had been denied true democracy and until we have
democracy properly, the journey which began with the annulment of
late Abiola’s election of June 12, 1993, will remain
uncompleted”.

Babalola, who said that democracy thrived on three pillars –
Executive, Legislative and Judiciary, regretted that it had not
been well with none of the three arms, hence the need “to take
steps to prevent the country from total collapse by immediately
addressing the critically important issue of National Conference to
draft a peoples’ Federal Constitution similar to 1963 Constitution
based on Parliamentary System of Government.”

He said, “For many months, Nigeria’s Judiciary existed only in
name. The courts were paralysed by a nationwide strike by JUSUN.
For the first time, all the courts in the country were shut
down.

“The compliance of the workers was that Judiciary lacks
autonomy. This fundamental issue remains unaddressed even with the
calling off of the industrial action by JUSUN. Up till now, the
Legislative and the Executive Arms have not addressed the issue
satisfactorily.

“The Legislature, which is the second arm of government in
democracy, has failed to enact a law to constitute a National
Conference to fashion out a true Federal Constitution to replace
the 1999 Military/Unitary Constitution foisted on Nigerians when
the Military was vacating the reign of governance in 1999.
Recently, it has spent billions of Naira merely to invite Nigerians
to discuss a mere amendment to the 1999 Constitution which is the
root cause of Nigeria’s problems today.

“The Presidency is engulfed in a serious battle with insecurity
by way of Boko Haram, bandits, kidnapping, armed robbery, burglary,
armed herdsmen who roam about the farmlands – killing and
destroying farm products.

“The Naira has depreciated to an all-time low while many farmers
have abandoned their farms due to rampaging cattle rearers and
kidnappers. Many schools have had to close down due to the ogre of
kidnapping.

“Finally, one may ask whether the declaration of June 12 as
Democracy Day by the Federal Government has so far yielded any
result and whether Abiola died in vain or not? Time will tell,”
Babalola said.