ON JUNE 12 HEROISM- CAN YOU PUT SOMETHING ON NOTHING?

ON JUNE 12 HEROISM- CAN YOU PUT SOMETHING ON NOTHING?

Oluwaseyi Oduyela/Washington, DC

Many people don’t get my point on June 12. They misunderstand and misinterpret my position on June 12 and Abiola. It is true I don’t dig the man; it is true I didn’t vote in 1993 because I didn’t see both Abiola and Torfa as viable candidate but I respect  the decision of the people  but not Abiola.

This is my argument and I challenge anybody to this. Abiola is nothing without those who voted for him. So June 12 is not Abiola. Abiola was never a democrat but a beneficiary of it.

The real democrats are those poor Nigerians-Muslims, Christians, Atheists, and Agnostics, Traditional religious worshippers- who saw beyond the religious and tribal bigotry to vote Abiola and Kingibe, both Muslims as President and vice President.

Let us forget how Abiola won the primaries and look beyond that.

The roadside mechanic, agbero, mama mulika alamala, Mama Toyin the groundnut hawker, Johnny the Taxi driver, Mrs. Shewa school teacher and most importantly those who died protesting the annulment of June 12 elections are the REAL and TRUE HEROES and HEROINES of our democracy.

I have not, since I have read write-ups on June 12, read any one mention these people. All I have seen is eulogizing Abiola.

How can you put something on nothing? While Abiola is the feature of June 12 the people who voted and died protesting the June 12 election annulment are the platform. They created an opportunity for MKO. They gave him the mandate and defended it on the streets.

Disappointingly, many of those calling  Abiola  HERO and claiming he sacrificed everything voted in the election were on the streets protesting, barely escaped the bullets.

So, stop and think for once, if the 8-year old girl that was killed in Ojota that day was your daughter, sister, cousin or friend- She would have been 21 years old now. Imagine what she would have been doing with her life. Or say you are related to women and men who died from Abacha’s bullet that and you hear nothing about their sacrifice.

Does it mean that because they are poor people,their death don’t count?

Abiola’s life is not greater than these people’slives. These people count. If they didn’t vote Abiola won’t be the winner.

I have not even heard anything from Abiola’s children;all I hear is “my father is greater than Obasanjo.” For 21 years, it has also been about Abiola and Kudirat what about these people too?

This is my case and this is why I side with them.

Why do poor people vilify themselves to glorify their despots? Why? I don’t get it. Many of us don’t even know who and what a democrat is.

One life is not greater than another. Before God, regardless of what you have, what you own, we are all one.

May the blood of these fallen June 12 heroes water our tree of FREEDOM.