How Abacha-led forces annulled June 12 election without my knowledge – Babangida

Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, a former military president, has admitted that Moshood Abiola won the June 12, 1993 presidential election, revealing the poll was annulled by forces led by late General Sani Abacha, his chief of defence, without his knowledge.

Babangida made these revelations nearly 32 years after the election in his memoir titled ‘A Journey in Service’ launched in Abuja on Thursday.

In the autobiography, the former military leader revealed that he had left Abuja on June 23, 1993, for Katsina to commiserate with the Yar’Adua family over the death of Musa Yar’Adua, the former Lagos affairs minister and the father of Musa Yar’Adua, the former democratic president who died in office in 2010, when he got the report that the election has been annulled, adding that the chief press secretary to his vice read the statement.

“Admiral (Augustus) Aikhomu’s press secretary, Nduka Irabor, had read out a terse, poorly worded statement from a scrap of paper, which bore neither the presidential seal nor the official letterhead of the government, annulling the June 12 presidential elections. I was alarmed and horrified,” Babangida narrated.

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“I would later find out that the ‘forces’ led by General Sani Abacha annulled the elections. There and then, I knew I was caught between ‘a devil and the deep blue sea’!! From then on, the June 12 elections took on a painful twist for which, as I will show later, I regrettably take responsibility.”

Babangida later appeared on national television to officially annulled the poll, which was believed to be Nigeria’s most free and fairest election. The annulment sparked nationwide protests, riots and prolonged struggle for democracy, which was actualised with the return to civilian rule in 1999.

Babangida, who resigned in the heat of the moment in August, constituted an interim national government headed by Ernest Shonekan. Abacha later hijacked power from Shonekan on November 17, 1993.

Speaking at Thursday’s event, which also featured the launching of his presidential library, Babangida said, “That accident of history is most regrettable. The nation is entitled to expect my impression of regret.

“As a leader of the military administration, I accept full responsibility for all decisions taken under my watch.”

He added, “And June 12 happened under my watch, mistakes, oversights and missteps happened in quick succession, but I say in my book, in all matters, we acted in the supreme national interest so that Nigeria could survive.”

The event was attended by dignitaries from Nigeria and beyond including President Bola Tinubu, former president and heads of state Goodluck Jonathan, Yakubu Gowon, Abdulsalam Abubakar, among others.

Nearly N17 billion was donated for the construction of the IBB Presidential Library. Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, led the contributions with an N8 billion pledge-broken down into N2 billion per year for four years.