“The buck stops at his table over June 12 annulment” — MURIC blasts IBB
The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has strongly rejected former military head of state General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida’s (IBB) attempt to absolve himself of responsibility for the annulment of the historic June 12, 1993 election.
The human rights organization dismissed IBB’s claims as an “alibi,” insisting that he remains accountable for derailing Nigeria’s democratic trajectory.
In a fiery press release issued on Sunday, February 23, 2025, MURIC’s Executive Director, Professor Ishaq Akintola, condemned the former dictator’s memoir, A Journey In Service, which was presented to the public on February 20 at the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja.
MURIC did not mince words in its rejection of Babangida’s narrative.
“We of the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) hereby totally reject all attempts by the former military dictator to exonerate himself from the annulment of the June 12, 1993 election fiasco. The former dictator should stop blaming others for all that happened. We assert emphatically, unequivocally and categorically that the buck stops at IBB’s table. We reject his alibi.”
The statement further accused Babangida of stifling Nigeria’s democratic growth by nullifying what was widely regarded as the country’s fairest and most credible election.
“We hold IBB responsible for the failure of Nigeria to cultivate a sustainable, visionary and dignifying political culture, having annulled the fairest, freest, and most peaceful election in the history of Nigeria.”
MURIC lamented that the book launch was not only an insult to democratic values but also a betrayal of the Nigerian people.
“Thursday, 20th February, 2025, the day IBB presented his memoir, was a sad day for genuinely patriotic Nigerians. It was the day leaders decided to disappoint the masses by hero-worshipping a former dictator, a tyrant, and a numero uno enemy of democracy.”
MURIC further accused Babangida of reversing Nigeria’s political and economic progress by overthrowing the administration of Major General Muhammadu Buhari and General Tunde Idiagbon in 1985.
“Nigeria was at the edge of the cliff when the duo of Buhari and Idiagbon came to rescue the nation from general indiscipline, corruption, and avaricious greed. We were getting it right when IBB came from nowhere to topple that corrective administration. That was the beginning of our descent back to the abyss of pitch darkness.”
The group also recalled Babangida’s draconian policies, including the detention of Buhari and the refusal to allow him to attend his mother’s funeral. MURIC did not shy away from listing the victims of military rule under Babangida and General Sani Abacha.
“The lives of many innocent Nigerians were wasted during the IBB-Abacha totalitarian military misadventure. Clement Akpangbo, Bagauda Kaltho, Justice Ikpeme, Alfred Rewane, etc., were sent to the beyond. The streets of Lagos and Ibadan were filled with dead bodies. Yet, the height of heartlessness and callousness was the assassination of the winner of that monumental election, Chief Moshood Kashimawo Abiola (MKO), and the killing of his wife, Alhaja Kudirat Abiola.”
MURIC condemned Babangida’s memoir as an audacious act of impunity, accusing him of lacking remorse for his past actions.
“MURIC strongly condemns the public show of spite, chagrin, and insensitivity at the Transcorp Hilton, venue of IBB’s book presentation. It was not only audacious. It was also outrageous, nauseating, and provocative. Salt was added to injury. IBB is not sober.”
The group decried the persistent failure of Nigeria’s leadership to acknowledge and rectify historical
