Babangida can’t escape blame for June 12 annulment – Falana

Speaking in an interview yesterday night, Falana described the annulment—which denied Moshood Abiola of the Social Democratic Party his victory—as the final phase of manipulation by Babangida’s regime.

Babangida, in his newly released memoir, A Journey in Service, claimed that he was not responsible for the annulment, blaming the late General Sani Abacha instead.

However, Falana dismissed this claim, insisting that the former military leader played a direct role in the controversial decision.

“General Babangida cannot deny his role in the annulment,” Falana said. “He claimed that on June 23, 1993, he traveled to Katsina and was shocked to hear about the annulment. But the facts tell a different story.”

Falana outlined a timeline of Babangida’s involvement, highlighting that on June 22, 1993—one day before the annulment was publicly announced—Babangida had already signed five decrees designed to justify the cancellation. One of these stripped the courts of their power to challenge the election’s outcome.

“So when the annulment was announced on June 23, it was anchored on laws Babangida had already put in place the day before,” Falana explained. “By June 26, he made a nationwide broadcast, alleging corruption in the electoral process, despite the fact that the election had been widely praised for being free and fair.”

Falana further accused Babangida of dismantling legal efforts to challenge the annulment, recalling how he disbanded the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal—led by the late Justice Bola Babalakin—on June 22, a day before the annulment was announced.

“For him to now suggest that forces beyond his control annulled the election is disingenuous,” Falana said. “This was a well-calculated move. Let’s not forget his own words: ‘I am not only in office, I am in power.’”

The June 12 annulment triggered nationwide protests led by the Campaign for Democracy and remains one of Nigeria’s most controversial political moments.