Lekan Abiola, son of the late Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola, has revealed that former military president, General Ibrahim Babangida (retd), has apologized to the family for annulling the historic June 12, 1993, presidential election.
Lekan made this known during the MKO Abiola Memorial Symposium held in Lagos under the Kudirat Initiative for Democracy (KIND), as part of activities marking this year’s Democracy Day.
The event also included preparations for the launch of a new book titled “MKO Abiola: Symbol of Democracy.”
Speaking with journalists, Lekan Abiola explained that Babangida had previously apologised privately to the family, but later made the apology public, bringing relief and closure to long-standing debates surrounding the annulled election.
“We returned from the United States of America, we have met IBB and he has apologised privately to us,” Lekan said. “When he came out publicly to say that he was sorry for annulling the election and that MKO won the election, he did what he had done privately in public. Every year, he always sends someone to represent him at June 12 events.”
Lekan added that the public apology has put an end to lingering doubts about his father’s victory in the 1993 election.
“Before now, there was nothing we could do about the private apology — it was like someone punching you in public and saying sorry in private. But with his public admission that MKO won, we feel relieved. Now that he has released the full results, it is officially confirmed that MKO won the election, and that debate is over.”
He also called on President Bola Tinubu to ensure that the Federal Government settles all outstanding entitlements owed to his late father, noting that past administrations failed to fulfill this obligation.
At the event, the author of the soon-to-be-launched book, Dr. Layo Adeniyi, spoke on the importance of preserving Abiola’s legacy.
“The book is about 440 pages. There is nothing you want to know about Abiola that you won’t find there,” Adeniyi said. “I traced his roots, background, business growth, and political journey, from the defunct National Convention of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC) to the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), before his involvement in the 1993 election.”
Adeniyi further stated that the June 12 election remains the freest and fairest in Nigeria’s history.
