By Obi Nwakanma
Mr. Muhammadu Buhari, President of Nigeria, announced on
Wednesday, that June 12 will now be “Democracy Day.” He went further to award
posthumous honours to the presumed winner of the June 12, 1993 elections,
Moshood Kashimawo Abiola, with the GCFR, the highest political honour in the
land, and his running mate, Babagana Kingibe, the second highest honours, the
GCON. To top the gravy, he also honored the late Gani Fawehinmi with the GCON
too.
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| *Buhari |
Quick as the announcement came, there were various reactions.
Not unexpectedly, many from the Southwest of Nigeria, particularly the
partisans of the APC, began to call Buhari the “new progressive.” Mr. Ahmed
Tinubu in fact did gush so much that he came short of describing Buhari as the
greatest democrat of Nigeria’s
modern history. This is not unexpected, because Buhari’s gesture fits into the
logical interest of the APC partisans of Southwestern Nigeria. And I shall return to
this. But the president’s gesture was quickly called into question – the
legality of it: first from the senate, came a flurry of tongue-in-cheek
statements.
