A former Secretary to the Government of the Federation and 1999 presidential candidate, Chief Olu Falae, said he won the election that restored Nigeria to civilian rule, not Olusegun Obasanjo.
Falae, who appeared on Arise TV’s Morning Show on Thursday during special Democracy Day programme, alleged that he was the actual winner of the 1999 presidential election, but was denied his mandate through manipulation of results.
The elder statesman declared that based on the legal review of the vote tallies carried out by his legal counsel, late Chief J.O.K. Ajayi, he defeated Obasanjo of the Peoples Democratic Party by a margin exceeding one million votes.
“I was told by my lawyer, the late Chief JOK Ajayi, that I won the election by over a million votes after a meticulous assessment of the figures declared.
“But we decided not to go to court. We were more concerned about the country returning to democracy peacefully after years of military rule,” Falae said during the interview.
Falae’s revelation reopened an old political wound from Nigeria’s transitional period following the death of General Sani Abacha and the eventual assumption of office by General Abdulsalami Abubakar, who oversaw the transition to democratic governance.
The 1999 elections were widely seen at the time as a product of compromise—a means to pacify aggrieved regions, particularly the South-West, following the annulment of the June 12, 1993, election won by MKO Abiola.
Falae’s candidacy in 1999, backed by two major opposition parties—Alliance for Democracy and All Peoples Party—was seen as an effort to appease the Yoruba people, while Obasanjo, himself a Yoruba man and former military Head of State, emerged as the PDP’s candidate with backing from the political establishment and the military elite.
“There was so much pressure not to rock the boat.
“We made sacrifices for democracy to return. I accepted it in good faith then, but the truth must be told: I won that election,” Falae told his interviewers.
“It’s not about me. It’s about the truth. Nigeria deserves to know the real story behind its so-called democratic rebirth,” he added.
Falaye regretted that since 1993, Nigeria has not had a credible election, noting that although democracy has been sustained till 1999, the conduct of elections remains a challenge.
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