By Timothy Agbor, Osogbo
The All Progressives Congress in Osun state has said that Nigeria is yet to be a democratic nation.
The ruling party said, “Until we (Nigerians) can win the peace, security of life and property; until we can guarantee the safety of our communities from the rampaging herds of armed murderers and bigots, and until we can civilize our political culture, we would be a long way off from democracy.”
In a release signed by the party’s director of publicity, Kunle Oyatomi, on Wednesday, the party said, “the war for genuine democracy in Nigeria rages on.”
“There is good reason to celebrate Democracy Day nationally today for the first time; but there is also strong reason to be alert and conscious of the lesson of perseverance which today’s event teaches.
“We cannot afford to ignore hindsight, to recall that the struggle to secure a firm foundation for democracy in Nigeria has been on for more than a quarter century.
“It is only just today that Nigeria has come to acknowledge the irrefutable relevance of June 12, 1993 to the establishment of democracy in the country.
“Since it took the country as long as 26 years to accept the inevitable, June 12 was allowed to morph into a relentless storm that is creating turmoil in different directions.
“And until all its fundamentals are allowed to take effect, democracy in full flow with all its benefits may well take much longer to be actualize.”
The APC, therefore, urged Nigerians not to forget the dozens of people (including the icon himself, Chief MKO Abiola, who had been killed, in the attempt to stifle democracy in Nigeria.
“Not only that, concerted efforts were made by powerful people to prevent Nigerians from recognizing the June 12 event as a watershed moment in the struggle for democracy.
“We in Osun are so proud to have been part of those in the forefront of the battle to actualize June 12.
“Part one of our success came in1999. Today we celebrate part two, which has to do with national acknowledgement of that day as a memorable juncture in our quest for democracy in Nigeria.
“However, it is not yet Uhuru”, the APC declared adding that “the war for freedom, justice, equity and peace still rages on our streets, in our forests, cities, towns and villages,” APC noted.