June 12: Tinubu, Nigerians disagree on progress, impact 32 years after

In what could pass for a rather symbolic reenactment of fate, the same solemn suspense and apprehension, which characterized the June 12, 1993, historic election also pervaded the celebration of June 12 as Democracy Day.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s resolve to reschedule the programmes put in place to mark the day stirred public scepticism amid plans by the Take It Back movement to hold a nationwide protest against hardship and bad governance.

In many states across the country, there were no serious activities—no protests or solidarity rallies—to mark the 32nd anniversary of the annulment of Nigeria’s freest and fairest election. Citizens ignored the public holiday and went about their normal businesses.

Addressing a combined sitting of the two chambers of Nigeria’s National Assembly, President Tinubu spoke to the nation and made spirited efforts to calm frayed nerves, painting rosy pictures of how democracy has grown exponentially since 1999.

Narrating his sacrifices and contribution to the growth of democracy, the President used the occasion to distance his administration from accusations of state capture and plots for a one-party state.

He said : “Year by year, election after election, every time we debate instead of battle, discuss instead of fight, and argue instead of destroying, we preserve the institutions of democracy. More importantly, we weave the culture of democracy into the very fabric of our nation.

“To those who ring the alarm that the APC is intent on a one-party state, I offer you a most personal promise. While your alarm may be as a result of your panic, it rings in error.

“At no time in the past, nor any instance in the present, and at no future juncture shall I view the notion of a one-party state as good for Nigeria. I have never attempted to alter any political party registration with INEC (Independent National Electoral Commission).”

The President however said that nobody should blame anybody working on bailing out a sinking ship even without a life jacket, noting that his political history shows that he is the last person to advocate such a scheme.”

“We must welcome and accept the diversity and number of political parties just as we welcome and embrace the diversity of our population. Our efforts must never be to eliminate political competition, but to make that competition salutary to the national well-being by working across the political aisle whenever possible.”

But no sooner had the President’s statements became public knowledge than voices of criticism resonated across the polity, with some condemning the attempt to muzzle dissent and run a self-serving administration that neglects its citizens.

Sounding a general note, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) – the same platform that Abiola stood for election – Adebayo Adewole, stated that as far as it is not yet over poverty and hunger, marking the June 12 as a Democracy Days is nothing but a circus show that meant nothing to Nigerians.

Adewole recounted how he joined forces with other youngsters to paste posters and distribute handbills in support of Abiola’s promises of restoring hope through governance, and rued that politicians are no longer mindful of the people, but of how to win elections.

On his own, former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, who was also a member of SDP in 1993, was more condemning and critical on the declining standard of democratic governance in the country, saying that instead of governance, it was state capture that was at play.

Going back the memory lane on the events of the fateful June 12, 1993, Atiku noted: “Thirty-two years ago, Nigeria stood on the cusp of greatness. The winds of democratic change were sweeping through Africa, and all eyes turned to our nation with hope, hope that Nigeria would rise as a beacon of liberty, justice, and self-determination.

“I was privileged to be an active participant in that defining chapter, which culminated in a historic election that captured the imagination of the world and reshaped our political destiny. It was a moment of great promise and great sacrifice.

“The political class made painful compromises, but it was the Nigerian people who bore the heaviest burden. They yearned for a new democratic order, and many paid dearly for it. I, too, made my fair share of sacrifices, most notably setting aside my own presidential ambition in deference to the late Chief MKO Abiola, a gesture made in faith and fidelity to a higher national cause.

“The gains of June 12 were hard-won. But sadly, the democratic promise that blossomed in 1999 is being steadily dismantled before our very eyes. Today, Nigeria teeters on the edge of a dangerous precipice—a creeping one-party dictatorship is replacing the democratic order we bled for.

“Those who laid down their lives did not do so for Nigerians to groan under the yoke of authoritarianism and economic suffocation. The ruling party and its federal government now govern with the unmistakable intent to dominate, subdue, and silence.

“Their tactics are not subtle. Opposition voices are being systematically erased. Contracts for multi-billion-naira infrastructure are funnelled to cronies and family associates of the president. National institutions, once symbols of unity, are being brazenly renamed in honour of a sitting president, as though the country were a private estate. What we are witnessing is not governance, it is conquest.

“This government represents the lowest ebb in our democratic journey. Institutions have been weaponised. Policies are crafted not to empower the people but to entrench fear, obedience, and control. The common Nigerian has been abandoned at the altar of elite comfort.

“And make no mistake: this is the antithesis of everything June 12 stands for. We are again at a historic threshold. Nigeria must choose: the path of democratic renewal or the dark alley of despotism.”

Labour Party’s (LP) standard bearer in the 2023 presidential contest, Peter Obi, also condemned what he called “the steady erosion of democratic values and the worsening socio-economic conditions under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.”

Obi wondered whether Nigeria can still be justifiably classified as a democratic nation, asserting that the core elements of democracy – government by the people, for the people, and of the people – are now glaringly absent.

He decried the persistent disregard for electoral rules, where he observed that regulations governing eligibility for public office are flouted, leading to the emergence of leaders who ought to have been disqualified from the outset.

“In just two years, we have moved from rigged elections to collapsing social services; from soaring poverty to rising corruption; from a seemingly stable economy to a parlous one.

“This government has created a situation where failure, lies, and propaganda are now celebrated. Instead of accountability and measurable progress, we are witnessing the manipulation of narratives, blame-shifting, and governance by gaslighting,” he noted.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also expressed worries over what it sees as “state capture” under the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Federal Government, accusing it of systematically compromising Nigeria’s key democratic institutions, including the National Assembly, the Judiciary, and electoral bodies.

In a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, the PDP noted that the APC has started a coordinated campaign to destroy democratic checks and balances, muzzle opposition voices, and concentrate power in the hands of a few elite individuals, thereby threatening the sovereignty of the Nigerian people.

The party was worried that the disturbing trend of state capture is obviously visible in the alleged collusion between the executive arm and what it calls a “rubber-stamp” National Assembly, as well as in the actions of certain compromised judicial officers who, it claims, now act in ways that erode public confidence in the rule of law.

The Senator representing Bayelsa West Senatorial District, Senator Seriake Dickson, on Thursday lambasted President Tinubu for refusing to reinstate democratically elected government in Rivers State. Recall that President Tinubu had, on 18th March 2025, disclosed the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Mrs Ngozi Odu, and all elected members of the House of Assembly of Rivers State for an initial period of six months. The President also announced the appointment of retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ette Ibas as the state’s administrator to oversee the affairs of the oil-producing state.

Dickson in a media chat after President Tinubu addressed the joint session of the National Assembly to mark Democracy Day and 26 years of uninterrupted democracy in Nigeria, the former Bayelsa State Governor voiced dismay that the President, in his nationwide address, failed to reinstate Governor Fubara and his deputy, as well as members of the State House of Assembly.

He said: “Let me start by saying Happy Democracy Day to all Nigerians — even though one might ask: are we truly happy? Democracy is supposed to inspire hope, but what we saw today in the Senate was a direct assault on that hope.”

Dickson, who was visibly angry about the imposition of emergency rule in the oil-producing state, which is controlled by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), described President Tinubu’s decision on Rivers State as a forceful takeover. “And today, it was very annoying that the Senate President chose today, Democracy Day of all days, to read the President’s own democratic communication to the National Assembly, making appointments into democratic institutions in Rivers State, when today we expected that he should announce the restoration of democracy.

In his reaction to the apathy of many Nigerians to the celebration as many Nigerians went about their business , a resident of Rivers State, Boroh Depriye noted: “They are practising military regime and dictatorship, so what are we celebrating?”