PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu has awarded the national honour of Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR) to Abubakar Dangiwa Umar, a retired colonel, in recognition of his contribution to the fight for democracy during the June 12, 1993, movement.
Tinubu made the announcement on Thursday, June 19, in Kaduna while commissioning projects in the state.
He apologised to Umar, widely regarded as a “soldier of democracy”, for omitting his name from the list of those he awarded the national honours on June 12, this year.
The ICIR reports that Umar had challenged the former military President Ibrahim Babangida for annulling the 1993 presidential election, which businessman, Moshood Abiola, popularly known as MKO, won.
Dissatisfied with Babangida’s explanation for the cancellation, Umar resigned from the Nigerian Army and went on to become an advocate for democratic government.
Tinubu spoke glowingly of him on Thursday while announcing his honour: “A man who stood firm on the side of justice and democratic ideals when it mattered most.
“Today, let me use this opportunity to correct an omission. One of the people that I missed during the June 12 broadcast in the National Assembly is Colonel Abubakar Dangiwa Umar. Today, let me correct that by honouring him with National recognition of CFR,” President Tinubu said.
The ICIR reported that Tinubu conferred national honours on eminent Nigerians who fought for Nigeria’s democracy, as part of events marking this year’s Democracy Day.
Among the honorees are the former Chief of Staff and politician, late Shehu Musa Yar’Adua, who received Grand Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (GCFR); Abiola’s wife, late Kudirat, who was conferred with a posthumous Commander of the Federal Republic (CFR); and Wole Soyinka, a professor and Nobel laureate who got the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON).
What to know about the new honoree, Umar
The ICIR reports that Umar was born on September 21, 1949, to a school teacher and administrator.
He joined the Nigerian Army in 1967 and was commissioned as Second Lieutenant in March 1972. He held various positions, including Aide-de-camp to Hassan Usman Katsina, a Major General and Deputy Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters.
He became the military governor of Kaduna State from August 1985 to June 1988 after backing the coup that brought Babangida into power. He was thereafter promoted to lieutenant colonel.
He is celebrated for his bold stance against the annulment of the 1993 presidential election and his unwavering support for democratic governance in Nigeria.
After retiring from the Army in 1993, he became a social critic and the founder of the Movement for Unity and Progress, a political party.
Nanji is an investigative journalist with the ICIR. She has years of experience in reporting and broadcasting human angle stories, gender inequalities, minority stories, and human rights issues. She has documented sexual war crimes in armed conflict, sex for grades in Nigerian Universities, harmful traditional practices and human trafficking.