President Bola Tinubu, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, attended the national premiere of MKO, a documentary on the life and political legacy of the late businessman and politician, Moshood (MKO) Abiola.
The premiere was held on Thursday at the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and Creative Arts in Iganmu, Lagos, as part of activities marking Nigeria’s 66th Independence Anniversary.
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Mr Tinubu, who served as Chief Host of the premiere, attended the event alongside First Lady Oluremi Tinubu.
Dignitaries
Also present were Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun, Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, Deputy Senate President Jibrin Barau, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Benjamin Kalu, Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy Hannatu Musawa, and former Ogun State Governor Segun Osoba.
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The documentary’s director and producer, Nigerian-American filmmaker Ose Oyamendan, was also present.
The president’s arrival was captured in a video shared by presidential aide Dada Olusegun, showing Mr Tinubu and the First Lady entering the venue as a band played the national anthem.
Tinubu’s role in June 12 struggle
Speaking on the significance of the premiere, Mr Oyamendan paid tribute to Mr Tinubu and recalled his involvement in the struggle against military rule following the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election.
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Mr Oyamendan said it was an honour for the film team that Mr Tinubu agreed to serve as Chief Host, adding that the significance of his role went beyond his attendance at the premiere.
The filmmaker said Mr Tinubu was among those who stood with the demand for the recognition of the June 12 mandate during the period of military rule.
According to Mr Oyamendan, the documentary examines the choices political actors made during the crisis and the consequences of those choices for Nigeria.
He said Mr Tinubu “risked his life, livelihood and his family’s safety by standing with the people’s mandate.”
Mr Oyamendan said the documentary was not simply about Mr Abiola but also about the struggle that shaped Nigeria’s democratic journey.
He added that 33 years after June 12, the documentary provides an opportunity for Nigerians to revisit what happened, understand its significance and reflect on its implications for the country’s democratic development.
Documentary revisits June 12
MKO chronicles the life, political career and legacy of Mr Abiola, with particular focus on the June 12 1993 presidential election, its annulment by the military government and the pro-democracy struggle that followed.
The documentary also examines Mr Abiola’s detention and the circumstances surrounding his death in custody in 1998.
It combines archival footage with first-hand accounts from people connected to the events.
Among those featured are former military leaders Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka and Mr Abiola’s running mate in the 1993 election, Baba Gana Kingibe.
Other contributors include former United States Ambassador to Nigeria Walter Carrington, former US Deputy Secretary of State Thomas Pickering, former Canadian High Commissioner Gerald Ohlsen, members of the Abiola family, foreign journalists and Theodore Zadok, who served as Mr Abiola’s security guard during his detention.
President Tinubu is also featured in the documentary, reflecting his involvement in the pro-democracy movement during the period.
Personal connection
The documentary also draws from Mr Oyamendan’s own experience of the June 12 period.
The filmmaker worked as a young journalist with Weekend Concord during the crisis and has used archival material and interviews with key personalities to reconstruct Mr Abiola’s political journey and the events surrounding the annulment.
Mr Oyamendan said the film’s extensive archive and testimonies provide an intimate account of one of the most significant periods in Nigeria’s political history.
The 108-minute documentary had its international premiere at the Sheffield International Documentary Festival in the United Kingdom on 12 June, before its Nigerian premiere in Lagos.
Cinema opening
Following Thursday’s national premiere, MKO is scheduled to open in cinemas across Nigeria from Friday, 2 October.
Nile Entertainment is handling the film’s Nigerian theatrical distribution.
READ ALSO: Independence Anniversary: Tinubu says student loans will keep poor Nigerians in higher institutions
The distributor’s Managing Director, Moses Babatope, said the project was particularly significant to him because his father worked at Concord Newspapers, one of the media organisations founded by Abiola.
Mr Babatope said the documentary would help preserve an important chapter of Nigeria’s political history and make it accessible to younger Nigerians who did not experience the June 12 crisis.
The choice of 1 October for the national premiere links the story of Abiola and the June 12 struggle with Nigeria’s Independence Day celebrations.
The event therefore brings together the country’s independence history, the June 12 political crisis and the subsequent struggle for democracy in a single national screening.
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