Atiku backed rotational presidency after June 12 annulment – SGF

File: Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, has said former Vice President Atiku Abubakar was among political leaders who supported the adoption of rotational presidency in Nigeria following the annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential election. According to the SGF, the annulment of the June 12 election, won by the late Chief Moshood Abiola, prompted political leaders to take difficult decisions aimed at preserving national unity and strengthening democracy. A statement by his Media Aide, Yomi Odunuga, said Akume made the clarification on Tuesday while responding to questions at a World Press Conference in Abuja as part of activities marking Nigeria’s 27th Democracy Day anniversary. He recalled that leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party met in Kaduna under the leadership of the late Chief Solomon Lar and Alhaji Adamu Ciroma to deliberate on the country’s political future, with the issue of power rotation featuring prominently. “It was a tough argument before the issue of rotational presidency was agreed on. At the end, we had to concede. We must do this. June 12 annulment had complicated the whole thing. It was finally agreed that we’ll be alternating between North and South. “Atiku was one of the leaders at that meeting, which was convened by Chief Solomon Lar. He was part of that agreement,” he was quoted as saying. Akume explained that the decision to alternate presidential power between the North and South was designed to address the political consequences of the annulled election and promote inclusiveness and national cohesion. Reflecting on the significance of June 12, the SGF described the annulment as a painful setback to the democratic aspirations of Nigerians. “Abiola won that election round and square. That election was annulled by the military government. It was very painful because the people spoke, and they spoke freely. They made their own choice,” he said. According to him, one of the major lessons from the June 12 experience is the supremacy of the people’s will in a democratic system. “The first lesson is that the voice of the people must always be supreme; it must be sacrosanct. That’s the beauty of democracy. We prefer the ballot to bullets,” he stated. Akume expressed confidence in Nigeria’s democratic institutions, particularly the Independent National Electoral Commission, saying the country had learned from the events of 1993 and would never allow a repeat of such an annulment. “If an election is conducted very fairly, and one wins, no p