Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
A group known as Ndi Igbo Intellectual & Cultural Development Organization (NIDO), has faulted the recognition of June 12 as Democracy Day in Nigeria without extending same recognition to late Professor Humphrey Nwosu who conducted the June 12, 1993, presidential election which the Democracy Day commemorates.
According to the group, it amounts to double standard for Nigeria Government to designate June 12 in memory of Moshood Abiola, the presumed winner of the presidential poll, while refusing to acknowledge the sacrifices of Professor Nwosu, who supervised the poll acclaimed to be credible both locally and internationally.
NIDO, in a statement on Monday, by its Director of Communications and Information, Dr Christian Afulike, urged President Bola Tinubu, to immortalize Professor Nwosu by naming a befitting national edifice after him in recognition of his invaluable contributions towards Nigeria’s electoral process.
The statement also urged Anambra State Government, Nwosu’s home state, to also name a major edifice after him.
It read: “With President Muhammadu Buhari officially recognising June 12, 1993 election and its outcome, the Nigerian state seems to have relapsed into a state of deliberate amnesia as there is no mention of the umpire who courageously and meticulously oversaw the elections.
“Late Prof Humphrey Nwoasu’s indelible contributions to Nigeria’s electoral process seems to have been deliberately forgotten by a nation that delights more in celebrating mediocrity.
“Without doubt, it reeks of double standards to recognise the election as the most credible in the history of elections in Nigeria; recognise the outcome of the election; and at the same time pretend to forget the brain behind the entire process.
“This is unacceptable and is surely at the heart of the abysmally poor performance of Nigeria’s electoral body in all other elections conducted in the country since then.
“We, therefore, condemn without reservations, this deliberate act of denying Prof. Humphrey Nwosu the honor that he deserves by successive governments at both the Federal and State levels as such is the recipe for the poor performance of subsequent electoral umpires in the country leading to the current sorry state of governance in the country.
“We equally demand due recognition and celebration of Prof Humphrey Nwosu through the naming of a befitting national edifice representative of any of our democratic institutions after the late egg head and proponent of “option A4”.
“This gesture will serve to encourage serving and future electoral umpires in the country to serve with diligence and integrity thereby strengthening the nation’s democracy beyond the ritual of electoral reforms,” the statement read.
In the statement entitled, “Erasing the Double Standard of the Nigerian Government,” NIDO said that it was a milestone for Nigeria to record 24 years of unbroken democracy, but emphasized the need to appreciate “the sacrifices of Nigena’s heroes who fought and made various degrees of sacrifices to ensure a return to constitutional governance in 1999 thereby aligning Nigeria with the rest of the free world.”
“The celebration of Nigeria’s Democracy Day on June 12 as against May 29 of each year (which is the day set aside to swear in elected Presidents/Governors in the country) effective 6th June, 2018 by President Muhammadu Buhari is in remembrance of Nigeria’s most credible election in June 12, 1993; and in honour of the winner of that election Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola who died in detention in the course of the pursuit for the actualisation of his mandate.
“This represents a scant atonement for the brutal deprivation and denial of the mandate freely given by Nigerian citizens through the most credible elections the country has ever witnessed to MKO Abnola; and the killing of his wife Kudirat and many other Nigerians who paid the supreme price in the wake of the struggle for the restoration of Nigeria’s democracy.
“As Nigeria observes the day, it is an opportunity to reflect on the gains and pains of today’s democratic governance riding on the back of seven successive national elections in 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019, and 2023 under different electoral umpires.
“Without doubt, a review of each of these elections only leads to an assessment of which is worse than the other in terms of all known indices of assessment of elections.
“The consistent clamour for electoral reforms till date and now periodic amendments to the Electoral Act depicts a sick electoral system which negatively impacts governance at different levels and resulting in growing discontent and lack of trust in Nigeria’s elections and democracy.”
