Chief Olu Falae, a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation and 1999 presidential candidate, claimed that he, not Olusegun Obasanjo, won the election that restored Nigeria to civilian rule.
Falae, who appeared on Arise TV’s Morning Show on Thursday as part of a special Democracy Day show, said that he was the legitimate victor of the 1999 presidential election but was denied a mandate due to results tampering.
The elder statesman said that, based on a legal analysis of the vote tallies conducted by his legal counsel, late Chief J.O.K. Ajayi, he defeated Obasanjo of the Peoples Democratic Party by more than one million votes.
“I was told by my lawyer, the late Chief JOK Ajayi, that I won the election by over a million votes after a meticulous assessment of the figures declared.
“But we decided not to go to court. We were more concerned about the country returning to democracy peacefully after years of military rule,” Falae said during the interview.
Falae’s admission reignited an old political wound from Nigeria’s transitional period, which included the death of General Sani Abacha and the ultimate assumption of office by General Abdulsalami Abubakar, who managed the transition to democracy.
The 1999 elections were largely regarded at the time as a compromise—a means of appeasing dissatisfied regions, particularly the South-West, following the annulment of MKO Abiola’s June 12, 1993 election victory.
Falae’s candidature in 1999, backed by two major opposition parties—the Alliance for Democracy and the All Peoples Party—was viewed as an attempt to appease the Yoruba people, whereas Obasanjo, a Yoruba man and former military Head of State, emerged as the PDP’s candidate, with support from the political establishment and the military elite.
“There was so much pressure not to rock the boat.
“We made sacrifices for democracy to return. I accepted it in good faith then, but the truth must be told: I won that election,” Falae told his interviewers.
“It’s not about me. It’s about the truth. Nigeria deserves to know the real story behind its so-called democratic rebirth,” he added.
Falaye remarked that Nigeria has not held a legitimate election since 1993, stating that while democracy was maintained till 1999, election administration remained an issue.
