Daily Independent Online.
*
Thursday, July 08, 2004.
2007: Activists remember Abiola
By ’Gbenga
Faturoti (Osogbo),
Segun Adeleye
(Abeokuta),
Victor Ebimomi,
Stella Odueme
and Lekan Sanni
(Lagos)
Pro-democracy
activists on Wednesday remembered the death of the acclaimed winner of the June
12, 1993 Presidential election, Moshood Abiola. They urged Nigerians to stop
the Presidential ambition of the man who annulled the result, Ibrahim
Babangida.
The
sixth anniversary of the death of the business mogul was marked by a session
held at his graveside in Ikeja, Lagos.
It
was attended by human rights activists such Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti, Dr. Joe
Okei-Odumakin, Mr. Joe Igbokwe as well as some members of the Abiola family.
One
of Abiola’s widows, Remi, who wept profusely at the occasion, rained
curses on Babangida for annulling election, an action that precipitated
political crisis that eventually led to her husband’s death.
According
to her, Babangida cannot escape the law of karma, even if he contests and wins
the 2007 Presidential race.
Ransome-Kuti
praised the courage of Abiola in standing firm on his mandate till death,
noting that such steadfastness is worthy of emulation by Nigerians who should
not allow him to die in vain.
Igbokwe
lambasted those calling for the return of Babangida as President in 2007,
saying ‘everything must be done to stop him in his tracks as he has
nothing to offer Nigerians after his eight years misrule”.
