The Inter-Party Advisory Council has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for believing in June 12 and renaming the Abuja International Stadium after late Chief MKO Abiola.
IPAC National Chairman, Peter Ameh, gave the commendation in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Wednesday in Abuja.
Buhari in his democracy day speech declared that henceforth the Abuja National Stadium would be called be called “Moshood Abiola National Stadium’’.
Ameh said that Buhari administration must be commended for declaring June 12 democracy day and naming the stadium after late Abiola, “who died while defending the presidential mandate willing giving to him by Nigerians’’.
He added: “All these things that the president has done for declaring democracy day and naming the stadium after Abiola are commendable.’’
Ameh, however, said more still needed to be done by honouring Abiola over what he died for by putting his name in the “Presidential Hall of Fame’’ as one of Nigeria’s past presidents in spite of the fact that he never had the opportunity to occupy the seat.
He added: “That will give Abiola family a succor.
“It will also give the upcoming generation the belief that Nigeria is on the part of recovery and the belief that all men’s rights, no matter how highly violated shall be put back in the right status as we move on in the future.’’
Also on the celebration of June 12 as democracy day, Ameh said it is a wonderful thing that Hope 1993 Election is being celebrated.
He said: “The fact is that we should not lose the key ingredients of the 1993 election. The election was free, fair and it stood as one of the credible elections ever conducted in the history of Nigeria.
“These are one of the keys ingredients that brought 1993 election acceptance to all tribes and regions.’’
Ameh stressed the need not to make June 12 celebration look like a Yoruba affairs, but the totality of Nigerians that bought into and believe in that process.
He said that the people who agitated for June 12 to become a reality were not solely the Yorubas, adding that many other Nigerians also contributed in making it a reality.
Ameh, who is also the National Chairman of the Progressives People’s Alliance said that certain things must be done to make democracy day worthwhile, memorable and acceptable to all Nigerians to celebrate.
One of such according to him is to honour Prof. Humphrey Nwosu, the former National Electoral Commission Chairman who organised the annulled June 12, 1993 election.
He said that Nwosu should be commended and honoured for being courageous in carrying out his assignment diligently, even under a military regime.
He added: “Nwosu, the man who has the enormous courage, who stood his ground, brought out option A4 and also announced over 30 states results before the election was call off.
“Nwosu should be commended and given an award now that he is alive, so that we will not be given him posthumous and say he had done a nice job for the country.
“You cannot take away the fact that somebody stood up in the face of danger, don’t forget Nwosu.’’
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