IBB has been our pillar – Abiola’s family
TWENTY years after the annulment of the June 12, 1993
presidential elections presumably won by late business tycoon, Chief M.K.O
Abiola, the Head of Abiola family, Mubashiru, yesterday, exonerated former
Military President, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida from the complicity that
led to the death of Abiola in government’s custody. Rather, he said that
Babangida, who annulled the election, had been a pillar of support to the
Abiola family since the business mogul died in detention on July 7, 1998.
Mubashiru, M.K.O Abiola’s younger brother spoke at Abiola’s
Oja-Agbo family house in Abeokuta during the 2013 June12 democracy walk
organized by the Ogun State Government.
The disclosure came on a day that President Goodluck
Jonathan said that ‘June 12’ had changed the history of the country for good as
leading politicians, activists and groups at different events to commemorate
the 20th anniversary of June 12 lamented that little or no improvement in
the welfare of Nigerians had been achieved since 1993, adding that poverty
among the citizenry had worsened.
Meantime, the Federal Government said, yesterday, that it
was ready to immortalise Abiola and urged Nigerians to come up with suggestions
on how best to honour the late politician. The government’s effort to name the
University of Lagos after Abiola last year hit a brick wall with opposition
from stakeholders and students of the institution.
Mubashiru, who in an interview with newsmen in Abeokuta
appealed to the Federal Government to pay the debt it was owing Abiola, said
Babangida‘s support to the Abiola family was unparalleled after the death
of their bread winner, saying, the family believed strongly that, it was not
possible for the General to kill his former friend.
He said: “Babangida did anything we wanted in this family.
Unless he did not know, he would come. He has been supporting this family. He
always supports the family. There was a time Abiola’s daughter was wedding,
Babangida was here with his wife right away from Minna, sat down with us; he
left his wife to stay with us till the second day. She slept in M K O’s house
till the second day.
“That is the major reason why I will always support him and
I don’t believe that Babangida was the one that killed M KO, no. That is
capital no. Everybody knew that Babangida was not in the government when M KO
died. How could you say that somebody who was not there did something? It is
not possible. Babangida does not know anything about the death of M.K.O.”
Delivering a speech on behalf of the family, Mubashiru
described IBB’s regime as the best urging current governments at all levels to
embrace the vision of June 12 by ensuring good governance.
“I want to state unequivocally that General Babangida’s
administration remains the best ever in the nation’s history and I implore our
current administrators at various levels of governance to embrace the vision of
June 12, by ensuring that every Nigerian family gets food on their table and
shelters on their heads, all employable youths get jobs while the nooks and
crannies of the Federation enjoy basic amenities.”
Source: Vanguard
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