Why I refused to declare Abiola winner of June 12,1993 presidential election – IBB Confesses | READ FULL DETAILS
Thirty-two years later, former military president of Nigeria, Ibrahim Babangida, popularly called IBB, has made open confession into circumstances surrounding the popular June 12, 1993 presidential election.
Speaking on Thursday, February 20, 2025 during the launch of his autobiography; “A Journey in Service” in Abuja, IBB confirmed that the election was won by Moshood Abiola.
He explained that as the then military head of state, he annulled the election without declaring a winner then to protect the interest of Nigeria.
In his words;
“As the leader of the military administration, I accept full responsibility for all decisions taken under my watch. And June 12 happened under my watch. Mistakes, oversights, and missteps happen in quick succession but I say in my book, in all matters, we acted in supreme national interest so that Nigeria could survive,” the former military president told the gathering” IBB stated.
He added however, that he regrets his action as it interrupted the return to democratic leadership.
“Our nation’s march to democracy was interrupted, a fact that I deeply regret. But Nigeria survived and democracy is still alive, a testament to our resilience and commitment to progress. This book is part of my personal story with national history,” Babangida added.
“Although I’m on record to have admitted after the election that Abiola may have not won the election, upon deeper reflections, and a close examination of all available facts, particularly the detailed election results which I published as an appendix to this book, there was no doubt that MKO Abiola won the June 12 election.”
“Upon closer examination of the original collated figures from the 110 polling booths in the country, it was clear that he satisfied the two main constitutional requirements for winning the presidential election; mainly the majority votes and the geographical spread, having obtained 8,128,720 votes against Tofa’s 5,84,8247 votes and securing the mandatory one-third of the vote cast in 28 states of the federation, including Abuja,” Mr Babangida said.
The 1993 presidential election which many observers have adjudged as the most credible election in Nigeria’s history has continued to dominate discussions in Nigeria.
Abiola was believed to have won the exercise. Calls for the then-Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate to be declared as the winner of the poll have continued over the years.
To honour Abiola, former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2018 shifted Democracy Day from May 29 to June 12.
