Close to 32 years after the annulment of June 12, 1993 presidential election in the country, the then military President, General Ibrahim Babangida for the first time on Thursday expressed deep regret for the annulment of the widely adjudged free, fair and most credible poll in the history of Nigeria.
Babangida, who expressed the regret in Abuja at the unveiling of his autobiography titled, “A Journey in Service” and the launching of his presidential library, admitted that the June 12 Presidential election was the most credible, free and fair, saying it was unfortunate that the administration that decided a near perfect electoral system could not complete the process.
He said: “Undoubtedly credible, free and fair Elections were held on June 12, 1993. However, the tragic irony of history remains that the administration that devised a near perfect electoral system and conducted those near perfect elections could not complete the process.
“That accident of history is most regrettable, the nation is entitled to expect my impression of regret.
“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 and oversights happened in quick succession. And I say in my book, in all matters, we acted in the supreme national interest so that Nigeria could survive.
“This book is part of my personal story of what was national history. I did not travel alone. I undertake the challenging walk of leadership in the company of many patriots.”
He said his eight-year administration confronted monumental challenges, adding that the reforms introduced by his administration also caused discomfort to Nigerians.
According to him: “I have had to contend with these questions all the time. When will you tell your side of the story? Understandably, our period of service is somehow evoked and rightly so, many questions and stories among our public.
“This book, which chronicles my experiences, decisions and challenges during our national service, tries to answer some of these questions from my modest perspective.
“My colleagues in arms and I presided over significant change and turbulent reforms. We confronted monumental challenges in the economy, the polity, foreign affairs and defence and security of our national life.
“We surmounted obstacles so as to change from the old ways. We encountered unusual obstacles and devised innovative solutions.
“We all thought to leave Nigeria a better place, and we found it after a great personal sacrifice, and in the face of significant challenges.
“I’m deeply aware of the inconveniences and sacrifices the public endure during this period. And I acknowledge and appreciate their resilience and commitment to progress.
“Although the reforms caused inconveniences to our people, we built lasting national institutions, some of which are still in place today.”
In his revealing memoir, Babangida said forces led by his Chief of Defence Staff, General Sani Abacha annulled the June 12 election without his authority.
In his autobiography, Babangida disclosed that he was in Katsina when the annulment of the election, won by Chief MKO Abiola of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), was announced by the Press secretary to his second-in-command, Admiral Augustus Aikhomu, without his knowledge or permission.
On June 23, Babangida said he left Abuja for Katsina to commiserate with the Yar’Adua family over the death of their patriarch, Musa Yar’Adua, former minister of Lagos affairs and father of Umaru, the late Nigerian president who died in office in 2007.
“Yes, during the stalemate that followed the termination of the results announcement, the possibility of annulment that could lead to fresh elections was loosely broached in passing. But annulment was only a component of a series of other options. But to suddenly have an announcement made without my authority was, to put it mildly, alarming. I remember saying: ‘These nefarious ‘inside’ forces opposed to the elections have outflanked me!’ I would later find out that the ‘forces’ led by General Sani Abacha annulled the elections. There and then, I knew I was caught between ‘a devil and the deep blue sea’!! From then on, the June 12 elections took on a painful twist for which, as I will show later, I regrettably take responsibility”.
In the wake of the crisis, Babangida had stepped down as president in August 1993 and installed an interim government, led by Ernest Shonekan, which Abacha would remove from power in November, 1993. Abacha later clamped Abiola into detention for declaring himself president.
Babangida, who did a national broadcast on June 24, 1993 to officially announce the annulment of the election, in his memoir said Abacha had become a major force in a “factionalised” military and it was difficult to remove him when he stepped down from power.
The journey to the June 12 annulment began two days to D-Day when a judge granted an injunction stopping the electoral commission from going ahead with the election. A group known as the Association to Better Nigeria (ABN), led by Senator Arthur Nzeribe, had filed the lawsuit.
Babangida admitted in the memoir, published by Bookcraft Ltd., that Nzeribe was close to him, but denied supporting the activities of ABN.
Narrating the theories that emerged over the annulment, Babangida wrote: “Tensions in the country were compounded by baseless conspiracy theories meant to justify the annulment. One such theory was that Abiola had pencilled down a list of top military officers to be dismissed upon assuming office as president.
“Another conspiracy theory was that the government had let the June 12 elections go ahead in the knowledge, based on security reports, that Tofa would win. However, once Abiola won, the government sought a way to frustrate his mandate.
“These were spurious theories circulated by those opposed to an Abiola presidency. Some persons indeed expressed their reservations about an Abiola presidency before the elections.
“There were times when, deep down inside me, even I feared that Abiola might not be an effective president. However, having allowed the process to go ahead in which Abiola appeared to have emerged victorious in an election deemed the freest and fairest in our country’s history, I was committed to ensuring that the results should stand. To do otherwise would amount to a subversion of the will of the Nigerian people.
“But I also knew we were dealing with a delicate situation that could lead to national disintegration. The military was factionalised into rival groups between those opposed to the transition to civil rule, particularly an Abiola presidency, and those who thought the military should keep its word and hand over to a democratically elected government. “The military was awash with rumours of plots by those who wanted to depose me to have Abiola installed and those who wanted to take me out violently to ensure that the annulment stayed.
“There were rumours of a third group, made up of sworn and implacable enemies of Abiola, a hard-line faction, who threatened that Abiola could only be President over their dead bodies! And if it meant taking me out violently to effect their threat, they were willing to do so.
“It was painful for me to discover later that apart from Abacha, some of my closest colleagues, particularly a Lt-General, were knee-deep in the plot to eliminate me.
“The only reason those disparate forces did not strike against me was that it was feared, and rightly so, that since I still enjoyed the support of a sizable proportion of the armed forces, any attack on the government or my person would lead to a bloodbath.
“The polarisation within the military was so fraught with danger that the best I could do in the circumstance was to project a united front as government in the face of the stiff opposition I faced as President.
“Although the annulment took all by surprise, as Commander-in-Chief, I took responsibility for it. In my speech on June 26, tepid and disingenuous as it may seem, I attempted to justify the annulment in the face of supposed nationwide widespread electoral malpractices’ during the elections! What mattered at the time to me as President and Commander-in-Chief was the unity of the army and my conviction that if the army was united, it could safeguard the country from disintegration.
“After several brainstorming sessions with various groups, I contacted M.K.O Abiola to find a way forward. At one of my several meetings with Abiola, arranged this time by some traditional leaders, I offered Abiola an interim position pending when we could resolve the situation.
