The Governor of Lagos His Excellency Akinwunmi Ambode held a lecture yesterday in honour of late M.K.O Abiola where he discussed the essence of June 12 and its importance in our democratic struggle.
Chief MKO Abiola's memory is celebrated in Nigeria and internationally. 12 June remains a public holiday in Lagos and Ogun states. There are also remembrance events arranged across Nigeria. MKO Abiola was known for his charisma and for being a man of the people. As a prominent social activist, democratic freedom fighter, and successful business figure, the continuing support for MKO Abiola is part of his legacy. MKO Abiola Stadium was named in his honour. There were also calls for posthumous presidential recognition.
Despite his popularity or because of it, MKO Abiola occasionally attracted criticism from political activists and detractors. Controversy was caused by a song by Nigerian musician, Fela Kuti. Kuti was a charismatic multi-instrumentalist musician, composer and human rights activist – famed for being the pioneer of Afrobeat music as well as a controversial figure, due to his unusual lifestyle and apparent drug use. It is believed that Kuti had entered into an acrimonious dispute relating to a contract with MKO Abiola's record label. He used the abbreviation of International Telephone & Telegraph (IT&T) in a song criticising big multinational corporations. The song, ITT accuses such companies of draining Africa's resources and makes specific reference to MKO Abiola ("they start to steal money Like Obasanjo and Abiola").
More pictures after the cut:
