Former military president, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB), has officially recognized that Moshood Abiola won the controversial 1993 presidential election, a victory he had once questioned.
The revelation came during the launch of his autobiography, A Journey In Service, in Abuja on Thursday, where IBB took a reflective stance on the events that followed the historic June 12 election.
In his 420-page memoir, Babangida devoted an entire page to the tumultuous transition from military rule to democracy, as well as the fateful annulment of the June 12 election a decision that triggered widespread protests and a national crisis.
At the book launch, former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo read an excerpt revealing IBB’s change of heart regarding Abiola’s electoral victory. IBB had previously gone on record questioning the legitimacy of Abiola’s win, but, upon deeper reflection and thorough examination of the election results, he acknowledged that Abiola was indeed the rightful winner.
Quoting from the book, Osinbajo stated, “Although I’m on record to have admitted after the election that Abiola may not have won, 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.”
The book provides a breakdown of the election results, including original collated figures from 110 polling booths across the country. Abiola secured 8,128,720 votes, defeating his closest rival, Bashir Tofa, who garnered 5,840,247 votes. Abiola also fulfilled the constitutional requirements by winning the majority of votes and securing one-third of the vote in at least 28 states, including Abuja.
Reflecting on the aftermath of the annulment, IBB expressed a sense of regret, describing the June 12 crisis as one of the most difficult periods of his life. He stated, “Looking back now, the June 12 saga was undoubtedly the most challenging moment of my life and, in certain respects, one of the most painful. If I had to do it all over again, I would do it differently.”
IBB also welcomed the later recognition of Abiola as a former head of state, a move that was made during the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.
This admission by IBB, though long overdue, offers an important moment of reflection and closure for a nation still dealing with the reverberations of the annulled election and its aftermath.
