According to GAFAMORG and NCP, the decision to recognise June 12 as Democracy Day was an important symbolic step but insufficient to address the deeper challenges confronting the country.
The Gani Fawehinmi Memorial Organization (GAFAMORG) and the National Conscience Party (NCP) have said that Nigeria's democracy remains hollow and deceptive, berating successive governments for failing to deliver justice, security, economic prosperity, and respect for fundamental rights despite the sacrifices made during the June 12 pro-democracy struggle in 1993.
In a joint statement issued on Friday to commemorate the 33rd anniversary of the historic June 12, 1993, presidential election, GAFAMORG and NCP said that while military rule had formally ended, many Nigerians were still trapped in poverty, insecurity, unemployment, corruption, and political repression.
The organisation and the opposition party described June 12 as the most significant expression of the Nigerian people's collective democratic will and paid tribute to the activists and patriots who resisted military dictatorship at great personal cost.
“Thirty-three years after June 12, 1993, Nigerians still draw strength from that historic vote. June 12 remains the boldest expression of our collective will, the courage of pro-democracy activists, and the sacrifice of patriots who confronted military dictatorship,” the statement read.
