Hero Of June 12, 1993 Election, Prof Humphrey Nwosu, Dies At 83
Former Chairman of the National Electoral Commission (NEC) from 1989 to 1993, Professor Humphrey Nwosu is dead.
The Professor of Political Science died at a hospital in Virginia, USA at the age of 83.
Nwosu is remembered for organizing Nigeria’s historic June 12, 1993 election which was widely presumed to be the freest and fairest in the country’s history.
He was appointed as Chairman if NEC by them military President, General Ibrahim Babangida and later conducted the 1993 election that saw Chief Moshood Abiola of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) won against Bashir Tofa of the National Republican Convention (NRC).
Nwosu introduced key reforms in the electoral process, such as the Option A4 and Open Ballot voting systems, as part of his desire to make elections transparent and fair.
However, despite the noble efforts, Nwosu was ordered by the General Babangida regime to stop the release of the results of the election ahead of the announcement of final results and was later followed with an annulment if the election by the military regime, a development that led to widespread protests and political instability in the country.
Following his contribution to democracy in the country, the Nigerian House of Representatives in July 2024 urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to honor Nwosu for his significant role in conducting what many still view as the most credible, free, fair and transparent election in Nigeria’s history.