Akure-base Prophet Olusola Okunade, on Saturday, called on former President Olusegun Obasanjo to seek the forgiveness of Nigerians for his inability to accord the winner of June 12, 1993, Presidential Election, Chief M.K.O Abiola, the proper place in the political history of the country during his tenure as the nation’s President.

Okunade who was in the trenches with the human right activists during the struggle to revalidate the election presumably won by Abiola said the apology tendered to Nigerians by President Muhammadu Buhari was not enough, saying those who participated in the annulment of the election should also apologise.

Speaking to reporters in Akure, the Ondo State capital, Okunade said the apology of Obasanjo became imperative because he benefitted mostly from the June 12, 1993 struggle but failed to accord Abiola the deserved place in the annals of the country.

Okunade said “the problem we are facing in the country is because of the botched third term agenda of Chief Obasanjo. Without June 12 and enthronement of democracy in 1999, there cannot be civilian President of Obasanjo.

“He spent eight years in office without recognising M.K.O Abiola. If President Muhammadu Buhari could apologise, the apology should be accepted without politicising it.”

The clergy who is the Coordinator of Unity and Peace Movement said other leaders who have ruled the country must also apologize to the people of the country, apart from Obasanjo.

He listed the leaders to include, former Military President, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, Gen Abubakar Abdulsalam, and the members of the Federal Executive Councils of the military government, saying they must all seek forgiveness from God and Nigerians over the roles they played in the annulment of the freest and fairest election held in the history of the country.

Okunade noted that apart from former Governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, many traditional rulers, religious bodies and prominent Yoruba indigenes betrayed the course of Abiola’s struggle.

He, however, called on Afenifere, the pan Yoruba Socio-Political group to pray in order to remove the curse on the race that has made disunity the order of the day. He argued that Ile-Ife should be the cradle and political headquarter of the Yoruba race.

He called for prayers for Yorubaland saying the unity of the Yoruba nation should be given priority while he urged the Ijebus and Egbas in Ogun State to close ranks saying the disunity between the two major ethnic groups is affecting other tribes in the Southwest geo-political zone.

Buhari had recently given the highest honour in the land; GCFR to Abiola and GCON to his running mate, Alhaji Babagana Kingibe. The government also honoured late Chief Gani Fawehinmi among other prominent Nigerians that participated in the struggle for the revalidation of June 12, 1993 election. (Tribune)

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