Nigerians Voted for Abiola Out of Disappointment, Desire to End Military Rule, Says Maina Waziri
The former Minister of Police Affairs, Adams Maina Waziri, has stated that Nigerians voted for the late Moshood Abiola in the 1993 presidential election out of disappointment and a strong desire to remove the military from power. Waziri made this statement on Thursday at the Second Posthumous Legacy Colloquium held in Abuja in honor of the late Raymond Dokpesi.
According to Waziri, Abiola and his opponent, Bashir Tofa, were not the initial choices of Nigerians in the presidential election, which was annulled by former military Head of State, Ibrahim Babangida. Waziri claimed that Nigerians’ main goal during that election was to end military rule, and they were forced to vote for candidates who were not their first choice.
Waziri stated, “Nigerians, out of disappointment, were forced to vote in 1993 for candidates not of their choice. With due respects, Abiola was not the choice of Nigerians and neither was Bashir Tofa.
The choices of Nigerians were Adamu Chiroma, Shehu Musa Yar’adua, Bamanga Tukur, and the rest of them.”
The June 12, 1993 election, won by Abiola, is widely regarded as Nigeria’s most free and fair. However, the results were annulled by Babangida, citing national security concerns, which triggered widespread protests and political turmoil.
This ultimately led to Babangida’s resignation and a long fight for democracy that culminated in the return to civilian rule in 1999.
Waziri also reflected on his friendship with the late Dokpesi, an emotional Waziri recalled past events, particularly the 1993 election.
He expressed concern over the state of the nation and recounted Dokpesi’s efforts in helping to strengthen and stabilize the Peoples’ Democratic Party.
The General Secretary of D-37 and former Attorney General of Benue State, Alex Ter Adum, described Dokpesi as a man whose memory is hard to overlook due to his significant impact on many lives and the nation. Adum hailed Dokpesi as a pioneer in the media industry and a skilled political strategist who played key roles during the Second, Third, and Fourth Republics.
The guest lecturer at the colloquium, Yusuf Usman, expressed deep concern over the state of the nation and criticized the corruption within President Tinubu’s administration.
Usman stated, “We have leadership that is focused on itself and distant from the people.
There’s no country that can be safe with injustice. With the hunger in the land, we are not safe in this country.”
Usman also noted that the military has been deployed to all the states, including the FCT, and that the people are suffering while the government is not listening.
He emphasized that the mess in the country was created by politicians and left for the military to clean up.
