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Lamido accused of distorting history and aiding military injustice
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Presidency insists Tinubu condemned annulment, supported Abiola from day one
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Onanuga says Tinubu’s role in NADECO and resistance was unmatched during crisis
The Presidency has fiercely responded to recent claims by Alhaji Sule Lamido, accusing him of attempting to rewrite Nigeria’s democratic history by alleging that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu supported the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election.
In a statement issued on Sunday by Mr Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, the Presidency dismissed Lamido’s assertions as falsehoods peddled on live television and described them as a “distortion of history” designed to serve political mischief.
The statement directly challenged Lamido’s narrative, which claimed President Tinubu rose to prominence only after the formation of NADECO and that his mother, Alhaja Abibatu Mogaji, mobilised market women in support of the annulment.
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According to the Presidency, Alhaja Mogaji never supported the annulment, and such an action would have cost her leadership position in Lagos. It clarified that although she once had ties with former military ruler General Ibrahim Babangida, those ties ended before the annulment crisis began.
Onanuga reminded Nigerians that Lamido, then Secretary of the Social Democratic Party (SDP)—the party whose candidate, Chief MKO Abiola, won the annulled election—was part of the SDP leadership that “surrendered the people’s mandate without resistance,” alongside Tony Anenih, earning what the statement called “a place in the book of infamy.”
In contrast, the statement credited President Tinubu with consistently opposing military oppression. It cited Tinubu’s Senate speech of August 19, 1993, where he publicly described the annulment as a “coup d’état” and urged Nigerians not to tolerate further injustice.
It further recounted how Tinubu backed Abiola when he returned from exile and resisted General Sani Abacha’s military junta, even after the dissolution of democratic institutions in November 1993. Tinubu and several senators were arrested and detained at Alagbon, yet continued to resist, fund protests, and oppose the military’s anti-democratic actions.
The statement documented Tinubu’s involvement with NADECO, which was founded on May 15, 1994, as a broad coalition calling for Abiola’s mandate to be recognised. It also highlighted Tinubu’s support for Professor Wole Soyinka’s NALICON, including financial contributions that sustained activists and journalists in exile.
Onanuga concluded that Tinubu’s actions—both during the military crackdown and in exile—solidified his reputation as a true democrat, in contrast to Lamido, who allegedly compromised with the military regime.
Describing Lamido’s comments as envious and revisionist, the Presidency accused him of suffering from “tall poppy syndrome”—a condition in which individuals resent the achievements of others.
It maintained that Tinubu’s record in the June 12 struggle is well documented and beyond revisionist attacks, urging Lamido to verify facts before going public with politically motivated claims.
