The Aare Musulumi of Adamasingba and Environs in Ibadan, the Oyo State Capital, Aare. (Dr) Raymond Adeyinka Adewale has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to demonstrate his commitment to democratic Ideals by ensuring that Nigerians benefit and enjoy real dividends of democracy in his ongoing administration
Aare (Dr) Adewale gave the admonition at the instance of the 2025 Democracy Day celebration, otherwise known as June 12, saying it was high time President Bola Tinubu demonstrated his commitment to the wellbeing of Nigerians.
He also charged the President to justify and fulfill his electioneering promises with timely provision of quality packages in order to continue to earn the trust of the people.
“Nigerians across the country are commemorating Democracy Day today June 12, by honoring the resilience of a people whose will to choose their leaders triumphed over decades of authoritarian rule, military dictatorship, and political upheaval.
“This year marks the 31st anniversary of the June 12, 1993 presidential election — widely regarded as the freest and fairest election in Nigeria’s history — and the 6th year since the federal government officially recognized the date as Democracy Day.
According to him, the June 12 election, won by Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (M.K.O.) Abiola, remains a watershed moment in Nigeria’s democratic journey. Though the results were annulled by then military ruler General Ibrahim Babangida, plunging the nation into civil unrest and years of uncertainty, it sparked a nationwide call for true democracy that eventually paved the way for the Fourth Republic.
“I sincerely want to admonish President Bola Tinubu to Justify the essence of this celebration by prioritizing the wellbeing of Nigerians through Democratic principles and tenets such that will return the nation to prime position.
“On June 12, 1993, millions of Nigerians defied ethnic, regional, and religious divides to vote overwhelmingly for Abiola, a southern Muslim from Ogun State on the platform of Social Democratic Party (SDP) and defeated Bashir Tofa of the National Republican Convention (NRC) in an election praised internationally for its transparency and fairness.
“However, the joy was short-lived, when the military annulled the results, citing “electoral irregularities” — a claim widely dismissed as baseless. The decision sparked mass protests, civil disobedience across the nation.
According to Aare (Dr) Adewale, who is also the Chairman and Chief Excecutive Officer, Aryfad Travels and Tours Limited, Adamasingba Ibadan, Abiola’s sacrifice has come to symbolize the price of freedom, adding that In 2018, when the then-President Muhammadu Buhari declared June 12 as Nigeria’s official Democracy Day, replacing the previous May 29 date, the move was hailed by many as a long-overdue correction of the historical record.
“June 12 is not just about M.K.O. Abiola, It is about the Nigerian people who, against all odds, demanded their voices be heard. It is about a collective resistance to tyranny, he added.
He said the most enduring legacy of June 12 is its demonstration of national unity in which Nigerians of every creed and background voted for a candidate not because of where he came from or what religion he professed, but because they believed he could lead them to a better future.
Aare (Dr) Adewale then urged Nigerians to continue to pray and cooperate with the administration of President Bola Tinubu in order for him to lead the nation to prime position.
