Former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Bode George, has alleged that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu once sought a commissioner position in Lagos State under the late military dictator, General Sani Abacha....Read Full Article >>➤
This claim comes amid fresh debates on Tinubu’ s role in the struggle for the June 12, 1993 election mandate. Chief George made this assertion while reacting to comments by Kola Abiola, son of the late Chief MKO Abiola, the presumed winner of the annulled June 12 election.
Kola Abiola had recently alleged that Tinubu only joined the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO)– a pro- democracy movement– after failing to secure a government position under Abacha.
Speaking on the matter, Chief George insisted that Tinubu had indeed approached the Abacha regime for a position before later aligning with pro- democracy activists.
” It is true that Tinubu went to beg for a commissioner position. He was in the Villa, and General Oladipo Diya is a witness. He (Tinubu) said he wanted to be a deputy to a military administrator, and when all that didn’ t work, he went into his activism, ” George stated.
His remarks corroborate Kola Abiola’ s claims that Tinubu initially sought political favour before becoming a prominent voice in the June 12 struggle.
Kola Abiola had earlier accused Tinubu of opportunism, alleging that his involvement in NADECO was a last resort after his failed attempt to secure a government appointment. He described his father’ s struggle for democracy as a deeply personal one, noting that he endured significant losses, including his mother and family businesses, during the political crisis.
” Most of what Kola said is true. He spoke from the heart, trying to set the records straight amid the many narratives. He had been looking for someone to help recognise the June 12 struggle so that his father wouldn’ t have died in vain, ” George added.
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Despite the national recognition of June 12 as a democracy day, Chief George expressed disappointment over Nigeria’ s failure to learn from history. He argued that the commemoration of June 12 should go beyond declaring a public holiday and should instead focus on fostering national unity.
” Now, June 12 has been adopted as a national holiday, but have we learnt any serious lesson from it? Have we done anything to ensure that the mistakes of the past are not repeated? Yes, people are pontificating and trying to use it as a political tool, but I believe we have not learnt anything, ” he remarked.
He further noted that Nigerians were more united during the June 12 struggle than they are today, stressing that the real essence of the movement should be to unify the nation rather than serve as a political instrument. ...Read Full Article >>➤
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