Presidency rebuts Sule Lamido’s claims, defends Tinubu’s June 12 legacy

Abdullateef Fowewe

The Presidency has strongly rejected allegations by former Jigawa Governor Sule Lamido that President Bola Tinubu supported the annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential election by General Ibrahim Babangida’s military regime.

In a press release issued on Sunday by the Special Adviser to the President Information & Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the Presidency described Lamido’s claims as “a distortion of history and a regrettable attempt at revisionism,” emphasising that Tinubu was a consistent pro-democracy advocate who opposed the annulment from the Senate floor in 1993.

The release stated, “Senator Tinubu unequivocally condemned the annulment, describing it as another coup d’état and urging Nigerians to reject injustice and lawlessness” and quoted Tinubu saying, “We have a situation that suggests that the abortion of the June 12 election is another coup d’etat. The present military administration has committed a crime”.

The Presidency also refuted Lamido’s assertion that Tinubu’s mother, Alhaja Abibatu Mogaji, mobilised market women to support the annulment, noting that such a move would have cost her leadership in Lagos markets.

Onanuga highlighted that Lamido himself, as SDP national secretary, was part of the party leadership that failed to resist the annulment effectively.

Further, the statement recalled Tinubu’s active role in the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) formed in 1994 to oppose General Sani Abacha’s regime and support the June 12 mandate, contrasting this with Lamido’s political deals with the military government and his later emergence in politics.

It said, “Tinubu played a leading role in the agitation against the June 12 annulment. Many NADECO leaders and journalists openly admitted that Tinubu sustained them and provided funds for the struggle”.

Lamido had claimed on Arise Television that Tinubu only became relevant after Abacha’s takeover and was “actively hand-in-glove with Babangida,” even alleging his mother organised support for the annulment.

The Presidency dismissed these as falsehoods intended to rewrite history for political reasons.

Onanuga thereby advised Lamido to “check his facts before going on television to spread falsehoods,” warning that such revisionism does not serve Nigeria’s interests and suggested Lamido’s accusations stem from envy of Tinubu’s democratic credentials.