Senator Adams Oshiomhole has strongly objected to any posthumous recognition for the late Professor Humphrey Nwosu, the former chairman of the defunct National Electoral Commission (NEC).
He argued that Nwosu failed Nigerians by not officially declaring the winner of the annulled June 12, 1993, presidential election.
Speaking during a Senate debate on Thursday, Oshiomhole, who represents Edo North, held Nwosu and former military ruler Ibrahim Babangida responsible for deceiving the millions of Nigerians who voted in what was considered Nigeria’s freest and fairest election.
“Professor Nwosu and President Babangida fooled the 18 million Nigerians who voted,” Oshiomhole stated. “If he was afraid of the gun because we were under a dictatorship, some people might say, ‘Well, there were Nigerians who protested under the gun without minding the consequences.’”
Oshiomhole argued that Nwosu had multiple opportunities to set the record straight, especially after Nigeria returned to democracy in 1999, but he failed to do so.
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“After the end of Babangida’s tenure, the death of Abiola, and the birth of the new democracy that produced President Obasanjo, I would have expected Nwosu to say—either on his birthday or on a special occasion—‘I couldn’t declare these numbers then, but now, on my record, Abiola won this election. I just wasn’t able to announce it,’” he said.
“He died without confession; he cannot be rewarded,” Oshiomhole added, emphasizing that history should not be rewritten to celebrate someone who, in his view, failed to uphold the truth.
The debate arose during deliberations on a motion sponsored by Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe (Abia South), which sought to recognize Nwosu’s role in Nigeria’s democratic transition.
However, Oshiomhole maintained that true bravery would have meant announcing Moshood Abiola’s victory despite the risks, and since Nwosu did not do so, he did not deserve national honors.