Moshood Adebayo
A pro-democracy group, Coalition for Good Governance and Justice (CFGGAJ), has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to order payments of benefits being enjoyed by past presidents and heads of state to the family of June 12, 1993 president election winner, Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola.
The group, which lauded Buhari for declaring June 12 as Democracy Day, also canvassed placement of Abiola’s portrait besides former heads of state and presidents in the country.
CFGGAJ’s convener, Emmanuel Umohinyang, who said history will never forget Buhari for the act, commended his courage for shoving aside the prejudices against June 12 election, and the late Abiola by giving recognition to the historic election.
This, he observed, was commendable as former presidents looked the other way, pretending June 12 never happened.
Umohinyang said this was a clear testimony that Buhari was a true statesman and firm believer in fairness, justice and equity.
“It is an irony that when Nigeria returned to democracy in 1999, former President Olusegun Obasanjo did not feel he owed an obligation to Nigerians by acknowledging the efforts of the late Abiola.
“Ironically, many years after, President Buhari shoved aside those anti-democratic forces who did not want the mention of Abiola’s name in Nigeria’s history and went ahead to correct the wrong of the past,” he said.