The Secretary General of the pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, Sola Ebiseni, has stressed that the direct beneficiaries of the June 12 struggle, who are currently in power, must honour the social contract of free and credible elections ahead of 2027. Speaking on Friday in Akure, Ondo State capital, Ebiseni emphasised that the political class that emerged from the pro-democracy movement bears the responsibility of preventing national disintegration, noting that the country is in a state of war.
Contemporary relevance of June 12
Ebiseni, who spoke on the contemporary relevance of the historic vote won by Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola (MKO), maintained that June 12 will continue to remain a watershed in Nigeria's democratic journey. He argued that fundamental reform and the unity the country seeks to preserve would remain perpetually fragile if true federalism is not pursued.
Ebiseni's role in June 12
Ebiseni, who served as Chairman of Ilaje/Ese-Odo Local Council on the Social Democratic Party (SDP) platform and coordinated Abiola's Hope '93 campaign in the council, recounted that he was both an eyewitness and a participant in all processes leading to the June 12 election. He maintained that he was involved in the struggle for the revalidation of Abiola's mandate through NADECO and Afenifere after its annulment by the Babangida regime.
June 12 as a watershed moment
Ebiseni described October 1, 1960, as the attainment of freedom from colonial rule but insisted that June 12, 1993, stands as “an eloquent testimony of the determination of Nigerians to take the nation's destiny and its democracy into their own hands after 13 years of military dictatorship”. He added that “It is important to stress that several of the leading lights of the democratic processes since then, including Atiku Abubakar, who contested the SDP primary with MKO Abiola; President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who was elected also on the SDP platform as a senator and whose present Renewed Hope Agenda is deliberately coined from MKO's ‘Hope 93’ campaign mantra; and several others in strategic positions in the governance of Nigeria today, like the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, were all products of June 12.”
Call for credible elections in 2027
“The point being made is that the spirit of a peaceful, free, fair, and credible election which June 12 represented should dwell in all these direct participants leading the paths to the 2027 general elections. The term of the social contract which was delivered on June 12, 1993, is the demonstrated capacity of the people to choose their leaders in exchange for the protection of their lives and property and life more abundant, which Abiola christened ‘farewell to poverty’.”
Role of the military and politicians
“For the armed forces the spirit of June 12 is a testament that their role remains the security of lives and property of Nigerians and the defence of the federation's territorial integrity, a responsibility they have demonstrated with patriotic determination. They should remember always that the governance of the country remains in the realm of the civil society from which the military is absolutely insulated. In the same vein, the politicians and the elite class generally should realise that the nation is presently in a state of war and all hands must be united in the interest of the unity, corporate existence and sovereignty of the nation.”
State police and restructuring
“Thus, the current speedy consideration of the bill for the amendment of the Constitution for the existence of state police is commendable even as Nigerians urge the states' Houses of Assembly to follow suit. Above all, the most significant message of June 12 is the restructuring of the Nigerian Federation to re-enact the foundational covenant of true federalism in a significant devolution of powers and governance autonomy of the constituent states within a confederation of the regions.”
