(In Nigeria) June 12 and NADECO: A Legacy of Democratic Advocacy

 

Nigeria's June 12 Democracy Day celebrations have brought attention to the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO). The day commemorates the annulled 1993 presidential election and serves as a reminder of the coalition's role in Nigeria's democratic journey.

The National Democratic Coalition had championed the restoration of Chief MKO Abiola’s mandate, fought military dictatorship, and helped secure the declaration of June 12 as the official Democracy Day. 

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Their advocacy reflects a powerful national moment of democratic remembrance, in the process becoming a timeline conversation.

Since its founding in May 1994, NADECO brought together pro-democracy groups to demand recognition of Abiola’s 1993 victory and an end to military rule. 

They organized mass resistance, endured arrests and repression under Abacha, and lobbied for federal constitutional reform. In the 2000s and beyond, the group called for genuine federalism, restructuring, foreign support for confab efforts, and even posthumous inauguration of Abiola, keeping June 12’s ideals alive.