Jamiu Abiola, son of late Chief MKO Abiola and Alhaja Kudirat Abiola, says it took Nigeria far too long to recognise the sacrifices made by his parents in the fight for democracy.
Speaking in a television interview on Wednesday, Jamiu said the long silence that followed their deaths added to the pain of losing them.
Chief MKO Abiola won the June 12, 1993 presidential election, widely regarded as Nigeria’s freest poll. He was detained and died in custody in 1998. His wife, Kudirat, was assassinated in 1996 for her activism.
Jamiu said: “For a long time, it felt as though history was being written without my father’s name.
“It wasn’t just painful as a son, it was painful as a Nigerian. Because the truth was being left out.”
Jamiu credited former president Muhammadu Buhari for taking a bold step in 2018 by declaring June 12 as Democracy Day and conferring the Grand Commander of the Federal Republic (GCFR) on Abiola.
His words: “That was a moment of truth. It corrected a long-standing omission and finally placed my father’s legacy where it belongs in the national memory.”
Jamiu also praised President Bola Tinubu for honouring his mother, Kudirat Abiola, with a posthumous Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR) award this year.
He said: “President Tinubu has always stood with our family, even before it was politically convenient.
“He was the first to publicly honour my mother as governor of Lagos in 1999. What he’s doing now is consistent with that history.”
Jamiu said his father’s legacy became regionalised after the annulment, despite Abiola’s wide national support.
His words: “My father won the majority of votes across the country — north, south, Muslim, and Christian.
“But after the annulment, the broader national recognition faded, and it was mostly the southwest that remembered. That was difficult.”
Now serving as senior special assistant to the president on special duties, linguistics, and foreign affairs, Jamiu said the push for recognition is rooted in national integrity.
He stated: “This is not just about the Abiola family. It’s about the integrity of our national history.
“When a country remembers its true heroes, it sends a message to future generations that sacrifice, courage, and service to the nation matter.”
The article was originally published on Politics Nigeria.
