Ten years after the annulment of the June 12^th, 1993 election, a reenactment is being played out in Anambra State, Nigeria. Over the weekend, for the second time in six months, the governor of the state Dr. Chris Ngige has been forced out of the government house in Awka. In the first instance, which occurred on July 10, 2003, the state house of assembly accepted a purported letter of resignation from Governor Ngige and ordered that he be removed from office. The role of the Nigerian police led by retired AIG Ige and the role of Chris Uba is not forgotten and the truth as to why and how the letters were written in a toilet and shrine have since come to light. Subsequently, the Anambra house of assembly has apologized to the governor and reaffirms their allegiance to the people and government of Anambra state. I hope they live up to their pledge of allegiance this time around. In the current instance that occurred over the new year weekend, one Mr. Nelson Achukwu, acting in concert with the notorious Chris Uba, have with the connivance of an Enugu high court judge obtained a nocturnal judgment by default ordering the IG of police Mr. Tafa Balogun to once again remove the governor from office. The IG has since begun the process of removing the governor by withdrawing his personal security.

In this ongoing deadly affront on the sovereignty of the people and the constitution of Nigeria, the memory of the June 12^th annulment is awakened and brought to focus and it is worthwhile to compare the scenario that existed in 1993 and what we are witnessing today. Briefly, some of the facts of the 1993 annulled election are;

1.The full result of the election was not officially declared.

2.The winner, presumed to be Chief MKO Abiola, was never sworn into office.

3. Chief MKO Abiola never function for a minute in the position for which he was elected.

4. The government at the center, headed by Ibrahim Babangida, was illegitimate having derived and sustained its powers through the barrel of the gun rather than the people of Nigeria.

5. Expectations in 1993 were low knowing that IBB had banned, unbanned and rebanned politicians and political parties prior to the June 12^th election.

Contrast the scenario above with what we are witnessing now;

1.The results of the Anambra elections have been fully counted and a winner declared by the appropriate authorities.

2. Governor Ngige having been declared as the winner has also been duly sworn into office.

3. Governor Ngige has been discharging his duties diligently to the people of Anambra state to the disappointment of those who thought they could use him to loot the state treasury.

4. The government at the center headed by Olusegun Obasanjo is an elected government deriving its powers from the people or so we think.

5. Much is expected from Obasanjo having had the rare opportunity of ruling Nigeria for the 3^rd term and having been a victim of government high handedness prior to his second coming.

While the June 12,1993 annulment, in my opinion. amounts to a criminal abortion of an electoral process, the Anambra saga amounts to a coup and a brutal assault on constitutionality and the sovereignty of the Nigerian people. Interestingly, in 1993, Nigerians from all works of life fought Babangida and his murderous regime to a stand still and Babangida was forced to "step aside" to save his neck. Looking at the two scenarios presented above, one would expect that Nigerians and the government at the center this time around would jump on the coup plotters in Anambra state and ensure the prompt and full restoration of constitutionality and order. Sadly, the opposite is the reality we now face. For reasons ranging from political expediency to political cowardice, ethnic sensitivities to ethnic colonization, lack of awareness to criminal unwillingness to defend the constitution, Nigerians have become mere spectators in a deadly game that threatens to prolong their enslavement in their own land.

The same Obasanjo who in 1993 proclaimed that Abiola is not suitable for the presidency of Nigeria is today seen to be spear heading the onslaught on the constitution in order to remove Ngige from power. Mr. President`s elevation of agberos and bastards to prominence and their subsequent use to desecrate vital institutions of state, like the judiciary, in order to achieve his goal is a testament to his malformed sadistic psyche. It is my opinion that Obasanjo`s affront on the constitution is a much more serious crime than the annulment of the June 12^th election. He ought to be impeached and prosecuted. Now is the time for Nigerians to wake up and defend themselves against Obasanjo and co.

Jan 2004