The Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR),has implored President Bola Tinubu, to prosecute Nigeria’s former military ruler, General Babangida for crimes against humanity and for annulling the June 12 1993 Presidential Election that subverted the democratic will of the Nigerian people.
Babangida,had few days admitted that Bashorun MKO Abiioa,won the presidential election,and begged Nigerians to forgive him for annulling the election.
General Babangida’s belated admission is not only an affront to the principles of democracy and justice but also a clear acknowledgment of his direct involvement in an act that plunged Nigeria into years of political turmoil, civil unrest, loss of lives and properties and inestimable economic hardship, Debo Adeniran,president of CDHR,in a statement on Friday.
He reasoned that such action should be regarded as a coup d’état to the administration of M.K.O Abiola who was robbed in broad daylight and denied the opportunity of savouring his well-deserved victory at the polls.
He told President Tinubu that Babangida’s prosecution should not be difficult since the chief plotter has confessed to these crimes in public and in writing as published in his book, “A Journey in Service”.
According to him, the fact that the result of that election was already in public domain and everybody knew that Abiola won the election, before Babangida in his typical deft ‘Maradonic’ maneuvering of people’s sensibilities stopped the official announcement of the remaining results, made the annulment as good as committing a coup d’état against the administration the people voted for.
He added:”His actions meet the threshold of crime against humanity, as they resulted in widespread human rights abuses and the repression of pro-democracy activists and ultimately affected huge number of people who were affected by the misrule and misgovernance that followed that inglorious annulment.
“We would also like to remind President Tinubu that just as he said that Babangida lost the opportunity to become a hero with the annulment of the June 12 election, he (President Tinubu) should not lose that opportunity of becoming the hero of the June 12 struggle by announcing MKO Abiola as a past Nigerian president with full privileges of the status posthumously granted him and his family.
“We would also like the Government of the day to punish the likes of all beneficiaries of the coup d’état especially late Chief Ernest Shonekan, and those that served in his kangaroo and illegal cabinet called the “Interim National Government”. His successor, late Gen. Sanni Abacha, Justice Ikpeme, who delivered the midnight verdict to accentuate the journey to perdition, spineless late Humphrey Nwosu, who succumbed to illegal instructions to truncate announcement of the election results and all others who benefitted from the annulment of the election one way or the other”.
He suggested that the national honours conferred on them should be withdrawn and the benefits being paid to the families of the dead ones among them should also be withdrawn.
He added that the physical belongings that they may have acquired during their illegal stay in office should also be confiscated even when some of them could no longer be prosecuted because they are no longer alive.
Besides, he urged the Nigerian judiciary, relevant anti-corruption agencies, and international human rights organizations to take decisive action in ensuring that justice is served,adding that the culture of impunity must end, and those responsible for Nigeria’s democratic setbacks must be held accountable.