Nigeria’s Ambassador-designate to Germany, Femi Fani-Kayode, has faulted criticism levelled against the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) by former presidential candidate Peter Obi.
Obi had issued a statement on X praising the late military Head of State, Sani Abacha, while denigrating NADECO’s activism.
He said, “Today, General Sani Abacha, once presumed the face of oppression, will be remembered as seemingly more democratic and more respectful of human rights than the so-called champions of activism from the NADECO days. Power indeed reveals character.”
Reacting, Fani-Kayode described the statement as an attempt to denigrate the leaders and members of the movement, who, according to him, fought military rule and made the ultimate sacrifice for democracy in Nigeria.
He recalled that Obi worked assiduously for Abacha while NADECO leaders and foot soldiers resisted the regime, facing imprisonment, exile, oppression, persecution, and torture. He added that many were killed or attacked during the struggle.
“Worse still, the unrecognised and defunct Association of Destructive C*nts (ADC), of which he is a leader, has a National Chairman, David Mark, who in 1993 allegedly said that if the winner of the June 12, 1993 election, MKO Abiola, were sworn in as President, he would shoot him in the head,” he said.
Fani-Kayode further alleged that figures like Obi, Mark, and Abacha contributed to events that led to the annulment of the June 12 election by Ibrahim Babangida, plunging the nation into crisis.
He added that many of Obi’s supporters were too young to understand the historical context, stating that they would be educated on what he described as Obi’s role during that period.
He argued that Obi and members of his party should not claim to be champions of democracy, alleging that some were aligned with military regimes at the time.
Fani-Kayode advised Obi to refrain from commenting on NADECO, urging him to respect the sacrifices made between 1992 and 1999 by pro-democracy activists.
“Many of us were in NADECO, and we are living witnesses to what happened.
“We spoke out, wrote articles, suffered persecution, were imprisoned, tortured, killed, or forced into exile. Some had their homes burnt and relatives targeted.
“Those were the darkest days of our history, which many seem to have downplayed or forgotten.
“It was also a period when Nigeria came closest to disintegration, with a second civil war looming.”
He also expressed disappointment at some NADECO veterans, including Dele Momodu and Rauf Aregbesola, whom he accused of disregarding past sacrifices.
“In fairness to Atiku Abubakar, he opposed Abacha. But Obi, he claimed, supported him, while Mark played a role in the June 12 annulment.
“The blood of those who died during that period still pains us, and we will never forget them,” he said.
