Speakers and human rights groups at the 15th anniversary of the slain Alhaja Kudirat Abiola have renewed their call on Federal Government for the immortalization of the deceased believed to be a martyr of democracy in Nigeria.
Kudirat Abiola, the wife of the late M.K.O Abiola, the acclaimed winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, adjudged to be the freest and fairest in the history of Nigeria, was assassinated on June 4, 1996 in the wake of agitation for the actualization of the mandate of her husband.
According to the co-ordinator of the anniversary who also doubles as the president for Women Arise, a non-governmental organization, Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, the slow pace at which the judiciary is handling the murder trial calls for concern as “justice delayed is justice denied”.
Okei-Odumakin, who said that the large turn-out at the event was an indication that the woman did not die in vain, remarked that it was necessary for the judiciary “to speed up the process of adjudication and ensure that the culprit is brought to book”.
In the address of the secretary general of Coalition of Self-Determination Group (COSEG), Rasak Oloko-oba, the Federal Government must ensure that a major player in the Abacha regime is made to face the consequences of his actions while in power.
According to Oloko-oba, one of the ways the present government can prove to the world that it represents the interest of slain democrats like Kudirat Abiola, Pa. Alfred Rewane, Harry Marshal, Bola Ige and a host of others is to cater for the interests of ordinary men and women on the street who voted them into power.
Chairman of Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL), Debo Adeniran, enjoined the civil society to ensure that the interest of the people is not jeopardized by elected political office holders.
In the remarks of one of the sons of the late Kudirat, Abdul Abiola, who expressed satisfaction with the turn-out of the people at the event, believed that his mother died for the mandate of the people, urging them to extol the virtues of her mother in stimulating the struggle.
The highlight of the event was the laying of wreaths at the spot where the late martyr of democracy was assassinated in Oregun.
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