Former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Timi Frank, has called on President Bola Tinubu to posthumously declare Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola the rightful winner of the June 12, 1993, presidential election.
In a statement made available to The Guardian on Thursday, Frank urged Tinubu to validate the election results and officially recognise Abiola as Nigeria’s President. He also demanded that the government pay all salaries and entitlements due to Abiola for the eight years he would have served, with the benefits directed to his family.
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Frank argued that this move had become imperative following former military President, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB)’s public admission that Abiola won the election. IBB, during the launch of his book, ‘A Journey in Service’, blamed General Sani Abacha and other forces for pressuring him to annul what has been widely regarded as Nigeria’s freest and fairest election.
Reacting to IBB’s remarks, Frank insisted that Babangida must take full responsibility for his actions, calling on him to remit all proceeds from his book launch to Abiola’s family as a mark of penitence.
“I don’t think Tinubu should waste any more time in officially declaring Abiola President and according him all the entitlements and recognition due him as a former President,” Frank stated.
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He urged Tinubu to send a Bill to the National Assembly to formally recognise the June 12, 1993 election, validate the results, and declare Abiola the legitimate winner. He noted that Tinubu, having been at the forefront of the June 12 Struggle, was well positioned to ensure this long-overdue recognition.
Frank, who also serves as Ambassador of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) to East Africa and the Middle East, insisted that Babangida’s expression of regret over the annulment was insufficient. He demanded that IBB offer a formal apology to Abiola’s family and the Nigerian people, given the far-reaching consequences of his decision.
“IBB must apologise to Abiola’s family and Nigerians, who continue to bear the negative consequences of his wicked, inhuman, anti-people, and anti-God action when he single-handedly annulled the election,” Frank declared.
He further asserted that Abiola’s tragic death in military custody was a direct outcome of the annulment and the subsequent refusal to honour the will of the Nigerian people.
“Until IBB atones for his sins and Tinubu officially recognises Abiola as a former President of Nigeria, he will remain culpable and eternally blamable,” Frank said.
