Babatunde Fashola

Former Minister of Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola has said that the late Chief MKO Abiola would have become Nigeria’s president if the rule of law had been respected during the historic June 12, 1993 election.

Fashola made the statement on Thursday as a guest speaker at The Platform, a June 12 commemorative event hosted by Covenant Nation in Lagos.

“If the rule of law had prevailed, there would have been no crisis on June 12. MKO would have been president, and perhaps all of his promises about a farewell to poverty would have happened,” Fashola stated.

Abiola, candidate of the defunct Social Democratic Party (SDP), was widely believed to have won what many still regard as Nigeria’s freest and fairest election. However, the military government of General Ibrahim Babangida annulled the results, sparking widespread protests and political unrest.

Fashola condemned the annulment as a breach of democratic norms and stressed that the rule of law is not just a legal doctrine but the foundation of any functional democracy.

“I want us to see the rule of law in terms of law and order. “That is the perspective I want to share,” he added.

The former governor of Lagos State noted that Nigeria’s democratic journey will remain incomplete until the principles of due process and legal equality are upheld at all levels of governance.

Fashola’s remarks come as the country marks Democracy Day, which commemorates the June 12 election and honours the sacrifices made by Abiola and other pro-democracy figures.

He reminded the audience that even General Babangida had eventually admitted that Abiola won the election—a fact that underscores the tragic consequences of ignoring legal and democratic processes.