The Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, has urged President Bola Tinubu to act on the demand of the family of late Chief Moshood Abiola regarding details of ₦45 billion debt owed by the Federal Government.
News360 Info reports that MKO Abiola’s family demand comes after former Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, recently appealed to President Bola Tinubu to compensate the family as a gesture of national healing and justice.
Lamido had revived a dispute over money allegedly owed to the late Abiola, insisting the Federal Government pay the business mogul’s heirs about ₦45 billion.
Speaking in Abuja at the May 2025 launch of his memoir, ‘Being True to Myself’, Lamido told guests that Abiola’s company, International Telephone & Telegraph, completed major communications contracts for the military government in the 1970s but was never fully paid.
He said a former head of state, Murtala Muhammed, acknowledged the debt before his 1976 assassination and that Abiola privately confirmed the figure when Lamido visited him shortly before his arrest in 1994.
Lamido framed the unpaid bill as “double punishment”, saying Abiola was first denied the presidency after his June 12, 1993, electoral victory was annulled, and then denied the contract money he was due.
The former Governor argued that settling the claim would give moral and symbolic closure to Nigeria’s long-running June 12 saga and demonstrate Tinubu’s commitment to justice for pro-democracy figures.
In an interview with Punch, Adams said the appointment of one of Abiola’s sons into Tinubu’s government is not enough and called for broader recognition of Abiola’s legacy.
He said, “That money should be paid to Abiola’s family. It is not just about compensation, it is about honouring a man who gave everything for this democracy. Giving an appointment to one of his children is not enough.”
Speaking on behalf of the family, Jamiu Abiola, in a chat with the aforementioned publication, stated that the family needed details on the debt to take action.
He said, “The former governor did not say what the money was owed for. He didn’t give much details about it. Since then, the matter has been what it is. Before we can say more about it, we need more details. For now, the issue that the money be paid cannot come up because it hasn’t been substantiated.”
