Lekan Abiola, son of the late democracy icon Moshood Abiola, disclosed on Thursday that former military president Ibrahim Babangida privately apologised to the family for annulling the June 12, 1993, presidential election. Speaking at the MKO Abiola Memorial Symposium in Lagos, Lekan confirmed Babangida’s private contrition preceded his historic public admission in February 2025 that the election—won by Abiola—was Nigeria’s “most credible” poll 7. “We returned from the United States of America, we have met IBB and he has apologised privately to us,” Lekan stated, adding that Babangida annually sends representatives to June 12 commemorations .
The public apology, delivered during Babangida’s memoir launch in Abuja, was described by Lekan as symbolically vital but long overdue. “Before now, for the private apology, there was nothing we could do. It is as though someone punched you in public and said sorry in private,” he told journalists . Babangida’s belated acknowledgment ended decades of speculation about the election’s legitimacy, with Lekan noting: “Now, he has released the full results. Officially, it is known MKO won, and that is no longer a controver
