ELEVEN years after, they just won’t stop talking about him. His strong character, his vision, his wealth and, of course, his women.
The other day, it was a colleague who remembered when he was on a flight with him. He recalled how the exceptional businessman brought out his wallet from his pocket and flashed a photograph of a woman.
He smiled, shook his head in excitement and said huskily: “Every woman wants to be Mrs. Abiola; they know it’s a good investment.”
The late Chief Moshood Kasimawo Olawale Abiola was referring, according to the journalist returning with him from a soccer match somewhere in East Africa, to a Kenyan professor who fell in love with the accomplished philanthropist.
Abiola’s story is an open copy. He had a good run. From an unknown drummer boy to a star accountant, frontline businessman, newspaper publisher and a great politician who taught the military a lesson in how to respect the people’s will. He died fighting to reclaim the mandate he was freely given by Nigerians on June 12, 1993.
In fact, here lies the paradox of his life; that in dying, he keeps living — in the hearts of all lovers of democracy. It was another anniversary of his July 7, 1998 death on Tuesday.
It is yet another opportunity to recall the essence of the late Abiola. If he had been accessible, MKO, as he is fondly called by his large army of admirers, would surely have loved an update on the political landscape.
Ever so vivacious, the late Abiola would always enliven a discussion. But what will MKO say about the polity – if the dead could talk? Let’s just imagine one of his numerous calls to the Concord newsroom.
Here we go: Hello… this is MKO. How’re you?
Ah! Fine; thank you sir (the reporter is shocked).
Good. I trust all is well with you. What’s going on in town?
It’s the anniversary of your passing on sir. A few days ago, it was June 12, the anniversary of your historic election as President.
Oh yes! You’re right. What happened?
There were many events to mark the day. It was a holiday in Lagos where the day is seen as the real democracy day as against the one decreed by some of the forces that stand for everything but democracy.
In Ekiti, Pascal Bafyau (remember him?), the bumpkinish former labour leader, mounted the rostrum to say that your election was annulled because he was not chosen as your running mate.
He said you had an agreement with the military to choose him, but that you bowed to pressure from Social Democratic Party (SDP) governors and chose Amb. Baba Gana Kingibe. He said it was he, in fact, who persuaded you to run. Many thought that was gibberish.
Bafyau? Aaaaah! (He laughs). I remember him. I think he is suffering from some horrific hallucinations. I never promised to make him my deputy. In any case, I wasn’t the party; the party decided.
Besides, why battling to abort a pregnancy when the child is already born? You can’t do that. No!
Anyway, how is Kingibe, Sai Baba?
He should be fine sir. He was Secretary to the Government of the Federation. Then they kicked him out after allegations – which I learnt he denied strongly — that he couldn’t draw a line between government work and politics. They said he was nursing a big ambition, which was not really stated by his traducers.
He was alleged to be holding nocturnal meetings, and the authorities wasted no time in showing him the door as soon as, so goes the story, a security report nailed him. The last we heard of Kingibe was that he had been elected last month member of the elitist Nigeria Golf Federation (NGF).
And, just yesterday, a Lagos television station, TVC, was showing clips of the June 12 struggle. I saw Kingibe sitting beside you as you delivered that indelible tirade at Epetedo. He was one of those hailing you. Sir…are you there?