Jamiu Abiola, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Linguistics and Foreign Matters and son of the late business magnate and June 12, 1993, presidential election winner, Chief MKO Abiola, speaks with Daniel Ayantoye on President Bola Tinubu’s role in the June 12 struggle.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

What’s your response to former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido’s claim that President Tinubu supported the annulment of June 12 and that his mother mobilised market women in favour of it?

That claim is completely false and deeply disrespectful to the legacy of Alhaja Abibatu Mogaji, President Tinubu’s mother. She was a revered leader of the Lagos Market Women’s Association, and if she had openly supported the annulment, she would have lost the support of the traders, most of whom backed my father, MKO Abiola.

In fact, she did the opposite. She personally petitioned former military ruler Ibrahim Babangida to reverse the annulment. There’s a particularly emotional moment remembered by many in Abuja—she reportedly removed her headscarf in public while pleading with Babangida, an act of protest that was captured in photographs. These are the facts, not the false narratives being peddled. I met her several times and wish more people had shown her courage and conviction during those tense times.

Why do you believe Abacha didn’t target Tinubu’s mother?

Abacha couldn’t go after everyone. My mother was an easy target because she was one of the few who stood openly and consistently against the regime. Tinubu’s mother, on the other hand, was highly respected and not easily isolated. President Tinubu himself was a visible and vocal critic from the very beginning. As a senator in 1993, he openly condemned the annulment on the Senate floor, describing it as a civilian coup. This was on record as early as August 19, 1993.

While many politicians kept silent or compromised, Tinubu took a bold stand. He helped organise protests and even facilitated my father’s safe return to Nigeria in 1993. He shared the financial burden of the resistance, unlike others who felt my father’s wealth meant he could fund it alone. His home was bombed by regime loyalists—proof that he was deeply involved, not sitting on the sidelines.

I remember visiting him in Maryland, USA. A man I didn’t recognise at the time came out of a room and introduced himself as Pa Adesanya. When I told him who I was, he shared how he had been wrongly arrested for my mother’s murder and spoke of Tinubu’s support for activists like him. That moment revealed to me the true depth of the struggle—and convinced me that my mother’s death would not be in vain.

Was Tinubu’s commitment to the cause consistent from the start or did it grow under Abacha?

Tinubu’s involvement was unwavering from the beginning and grew stronger over time. After Abacha sacked the interim government and dissolved the National Assembly in November 1993, Tinubu and other senators reconvened in Lagos in defiance. This led to his arrest and detention, but he refused to abandon the cause.

He became a key figure in NADECO, the pro-democracy coalition that spearheaded resistance to military rule. He was one of the few bold enough to accompany my father on a visit to Abacha—at a time when such an act could cost one their life. When the situation became too dangerous, he fled into exile but continued to finance and coordinate the resistance abroad. Few knew of his departure, but my mother was one of them. I only wish she had joined him.

People forget: Winnie Mandela survived similar activism in apartheid South Africa for years. Who would have imagined that a woman like my mother could be killed for her role? Yet she was. That’s why Nigerians must not be misled—Tinubu is the first true activist-president we’ve had since independence.

He has never supported the annulment of June 12, and he never lobbied Abacha for any political position, contrary to what some allege. He has always been honest, principled, and committed to democracy.

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