Former Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, has disclosed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu endorsed Gen. Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida’s choice to cancel the June 12, 1993, election that the late Moshood Abiola won.
In an interview with AriseNews on Sunday, Lamido expressed his amusement at Tinubu’s rhetoric and how he portrays his role in Nigeria’s democracy, leading him to boldly assert the President’s involvement in the June 12 annulment.
”I feel highly entertained by Tinubu’s rhetoric and how he’s dramatising his role in Nigeria’s democracy. Tinubu became relevant and noticeable after Abacha took over the government; before then, he was in the senate while he was the party secretary. He was one of those who supported IBB’s annulment of the June 12 election.
”His mother, Hajia Mogaji, was organising Lagos market women to come to Abuja to pledge support for Babangida. Tinubu was actively hand-in-glove with Babangida. NADECO was postulated to fight Abacha, not for June 12,” Lamido disclosed.
He said that President Tinubu served in the Senate as the secretary of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), after which he gained greater visibility in Nigeria’s political scene following the government takeover by the late Gen. Sani Abacha.
Last month, Lamido urged President Tinubu to demonstrate bravery and settle the N45 billion the government claims to owe to Chief MKO Abiola’s family. He believes that paying the debt to the family would provide symbolic closure to the June 12 struggle and acknowledge the injustice faced by Abiola.
“When General Murtala Muhammed died, Abiola came in with a claim that he was owed, I think, about N45bn for contracts executed by International Telephone and Telecommunication for the Ministry of Communications. The military high command at that time said no. He went around the emirs in the North to lobby, and the emirs asked the military to pay the money.
“They said they cancelled the June 12 elections because if they made him president, he would take his money and the country would become bankrupt. Those close to Abacha should know this because Abacha was then one of the big shots; they were all aware.
”I want to appeal to President Tinubu to finally close the chapter on June 12. In his book, General Ibrahim Babangida acknowledged that Abiola won the election. When I visited him, he also confirmed that Abiola is owed N45 billion. He was doubly punished: first, denied the presidency, second, denied what is owed to him,” Lamido said.
While advocating for a coalition to remove the APC from power, Lamido cautioned that such a coalition should be based on issues, rather than driven by revenge or personal ambitions like the APC alliance in 2014.
