Jealousy forced Babangida to annul June 12 election – Obasanjo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo claimed on Sunday ex-military President, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida (retd), annulled the June 12, 1993, presidential election due to jealousy.

The election, which was widely acknowledged by many as the country’s freest and fairest, was presumably won by the late business mogul, Chief M.K.O. Abiola.

The ex-military ruler was forced to step aside in August 1993 and he appointed Chief Ernest Shonekan as Head of the Interim National Government (ING).

Abiola, who declared himself as Nigeria’s president-elect and was subsequently arrested by the late Gen. Sani Abacha’s military regime in June 1994, died in prison four years later.

Obasanjo stated this after his investiture as a trustee of the Abeokuta Club in the Ogun State capital.

According to the ex-President, Babangida’s action denied Ogun State the privilege of producing three occupants of the nation’s highest political office.

READ ASLO: IBB, others must be punished over June 12 —Ex-Kaduna Gov, Musa

He said: “I want to thank the club for this honour being bestowed on me and the honour being bestowed on my schoolmate, MKO Abiola, which he richly deserved.

“When you win a cup three times, you keep that cup. Isn’t it? If not for bad belle, Abeokuta would have produced the President of Nigeria three times, in which case we should have kept it permanently.”

The Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo described Obasanjo and Abiola as proud sons of Abeokuta.

The monarch said “bad blood” didn’t allow Abiola to become the country’s President.

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