Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo has attributed annulment of June twelve, nineteen-ninety-three presidential election presumably won by late philanthropist, Moshood Kashimawo Abiola by former Military President General Ibrahim Babangida on “bad belle.”

According to him, the annulment robbed Egbaland and Ogun State the rare privilege of having three of its prominent sons occupying the number one seat at different times.

The elder statesman, who was referring to former Head of Interim National Government, Ernest Shonekan, himself, apparently noted that Abiola would have become the third if the nineteen-ninety-three poll was not annulled.

He spoke in Abeokuta, shortly after his investiture as a trustee of the Abeokuta Club, a sociocultural organisation of Egba people of Ogun State.

Obasanjo was honoured alongside MKO Abiola who was awarded a posthumous vice-patron of the club.

According to Obasanjo, when Abeokuta Club was in the process of being birthed, things in Abeokuta were not as rosy as they were today and that the sons of Abeokuta who were in Lagos put their heads together in late Chief Sobo Sowemimo’s house to think of what they could do to improve the development of Abeokuta as a city.

He thanked the club for this honour being bestowed on him and the honour being bestowed on his school mate, Abiola which he richly deserved.

“Kabiyesi, the Alake (of Egbaland) alluded to it. Normally when you win a cup three times, you keep that cup. Isn’t it? If not for bad belle, Abeokuta would have produced President of Nigeria three times, in which case we should have kept it permanently,” he said.

“But be that as it may, we have a great heritage. And we should be proud of our heritage. On this note, I will say on this occasion, I thank the President, the patron and grand patron, members of Board of Trustees, the executive,” he added.

Obasanjo said he would continue to contribute his quota to the development and growth of this club and by extension, the development and growth of Abeokuta, of Ogun State, of Nigeria, of African and indeed the of world in whichever way he could.