Soyinka asks Babangida to apologise over June 12
From Saxone Akhaine, Kaduna
THE ghost of June 12, 1993 election may continue to haunt former military President Ibrahim Babangida, as Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, yesterday asked him to apologise to Nigerians over his annulment of the election, before venturing into the 2007 presidential race.
He also asked the former leader to show remorse for his many economic measures, which stagnated the polity and the economy since his defunct regime. Soyinka spoke in Kaduna yesterday during a one-day visit to the Human Rights Community in the North as part of his 70th birthday celebration.
He argued that all the retired military generals planning to contest the 2007 elections should as well apologise to Nigerians regarding their roles in setting backward the progress of the nation during their various regimes.
Speaking at a reception organised by the members of the Metropolitan Club and other human rights groups, Soyinka pointed out that Babangida should take a cue from the former military Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd) who recently tendered apology for imprisoning him during his defunct administration.
Said he: "What I like is for people to accept responsibilities for their actions. I did read the recent interview of Gen. Babangida and how he played around with words without openly accepting responsibilities."
"If he wants to start on a clean slate, Gen. Babangida must apologise to this nation, in fact, for a number of things, especially for thwarting the democratic wishes of the people of this nation. The results of the June 12 election was not a result of one section of the country, it was a national election."
Soyinka argued that if Babangida and other retired generals were preparing themselves to contest the 2007 presidency, they should adequately purge themselves of past misdeeds, which retarded the progress of Nigeria, saying that the annulment of June 12 election was an assault on the nation's democratic aspirations.
The Nobel Laureate remarked that unless Babangida tendered an unreserved apology to the nation and prove that he regretted the arbitrary annulment of the June 12 polls, he should therefore not be trusted for any democratic responsibility in the country.
The apology from Babangida, according to Soyinka "would be the beginning and an attempt to wipe the slate for a clean".
"Nigerians are kind, very tolerating people, and then after that he (Babangida) would then start presenting his credentials like a candidate and a new applicant to the 2007 race".
He cautioned the erstwhile military president that "riding on the wave of having ruled this nation before is just not the way to go about proving his democratic credentials as this also applies to all former generals and incumbents, understanding that Nigerians are very soft people politically."
When asked whether he was ready to campaign for Babangida in 2007, he dismissed the question, saying that himself and other pro-democracy activists were already grooming a presidential candidate, which Nigerians would see as a potential and outstanding material. He however, declined to name the presidential hopeful.
Those who welcomed Soyinka at the reception include, Civil Right Congress (CRC) President, Malam Shehu Sani, former governor of Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, erstwhile Minister of Special Duties Wada Nas, Ambassador Mamman Yusuf, Alhaji Isa Aremu, Malam Umar Farouk, Mr. Yunnana Shekarau and Malam Nasir Abbas.
Meanwhile, as part of his visit, Soyinka's attempt to visit the Kaduna Central prison where he served a prison terms under the Gowon regime was stalled when top prison officials and other armed officers barricaded the entrance.
Soyinka later visited a prominent pro-democracy activist and Alliance for Democracy (AD) chieftain in the North, Alhaji Samaila Maiadashe where he praised the fearless politician.
In a welcome address, Sani urged Soyinka to continue to render selfless services to the nation until "we are liberated from poverty and hunger in the land."`
