Moshood Abiola

Chief
Moshood Abiola
GCFR
Portrait of Moshood Kashimawo Abiola
M.K.O. Abiola in 1993
Personal details
Born(1937-08-24)24 August 1937
Abeokuta, Southern Region, British Nigeria (now in Ogun State, Nigeria)
Died7 July 1998(1998-07-07) (aged 60)
Abuja, Nigeria
Spouses
Simbiat Shoaga
​
​
(m. 1960; died 1992)​
​
​
(m. 1973; died 1996)​
[1]
Adebisi Oshin
​
(m. 1974)​
Doyinsola Aboaba
​
(m. 1981)​
[1][2]
[1][3][4]
Occupation

Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola GCFR, also known as M. K. O. Abiola (// ⓘ; 24 August 1937 – 7 July 1998) was a Nigerian business magnate, publisher, and politician. He was the honorary supreme military commander of the Oyo Empire[a] and an aristocrat of the Egba clan.[5][6]

Abiola ran for the presidency in 1993, for which the election results were annulled by then military president Ibrahim Babangida.[7] He would later die in detention after making an attempt to assert himself as the elected president.[8] Abiola was awarded the National honour Grand Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (GCFR), an honour awarded to only Nigerian heads of state, posthumously on 6 June 2018, by President Muhammadu Buhari and Nigeria's democracy day was changed to from 29 May to 12 June in his honour.[9][10][11]

Abiola was a personal friend of Ibrahim Babangida[12] and he is believed to have supported Babangida's coming to power.[13]

Abiola's support in the June 1993 presidential election cut across all geo-political zones and religious divisions. He was among a few politicians to accomplish such influence during his time.[14] By the time of his death, he had become an unexpected symbol of democracy.[15]

  1. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference international was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference encyclopedia was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference wives was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "REMEMBERING ABIOLA, 15 YEARS AFTER". National Mirror. 6 July 2013. Archived from the original on 27 March 2017. Retrieved 26 March 2017.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  5. ^ "Are Ona Kakanfo's origin, myth and power by Prof. Banji Akintoye – Vanguard News". Vanguard News. 22 October 2017. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  6. ^ "Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola | Nigerian entrepreneur and politician". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  7. ^ Hamilton, Janice. Nigeria in Pictures, p. 70.
  8. ^ FIJ (12 June 2023). "RELIVE: How MKO Abiola Declared Himself 'President and Commander-in-Chief'". Foundation For Investigative Journalism. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
  9. ^ "UPDATED: Buhari declares June 12 Democracy Day, honours MKO Abiola with GCFR". Punch Newspapers. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
  10. ^ "BREAKING: Buhari declares June 12 Democracy Day to honour Abiola". Premium Times Nigeria. 6 June 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
  11. ^ "Posts tagged as #mkoabiola". picbabun.com. Retrieved 25 May 2020.[permanent dead link]
  12. ^ Rufai, Misbahu. (11 May 1990). A man called MKO. Muslim Journal.
  13. ^ Maier, Karl (2002). This house has fallen : Nigeria in crisis. Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press. ISBN 9780786730612. OCLC 813166032.
  14. ^ Holman, Michael, and Michela Wrong. "Chief Moshood Abiola Presumed Poll Winner Managed to Straddle the Regional and Religious Split in a Way Few Nigerian Politicians Can Do Today." Financial Times, 8 July 1998, p. 3. Financial Times Historical Archive.
  15. ^ "A thread written by @JoyLydia10". threader.app. Retrieved 28 May 2020.


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