Opponent of the presumed winner of the annulled 1993 presidential election, Nigeria’s freest and fairest ever, the late Chief Moshood Kashimawo Abiola and candidate of the opposition National Republican Convention (NRC) in that election, Alhaji Bashir Othman Tofa, has died.
He reportedly died after a brief illness in the early hours of Monday at the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital.
Tofa was born in June 20, 1947.
In the 1993 presidential election, which was annulled by the military regime of retired Gen Ibrahim Babangida, he contested against Abiola of the then Social Democratic Party (SDP). who won a landslide victory at that poll.
The annulment of the election, sparked nationwide bloody protests which claimed the lives of many pro-democracy protesters who were clamouring for the re-validation of the election.
Tofa was a businessman, an oil trader and industrialist.
He was chairman of International Petro-Energy Company (IPEC) and Abba Othman and Sons Ltd.
He was also involved as a board member in Impex Ventures, Century Merchant Bank and General Metal Products Ltd.
He had his primary education at Shahuci Junior Primary, Kano and then continued studies at City Senior Primary School in Kano.
From 1962 to 1966, he attended Provincial College, Kano.
After completing his studies at the Provincial school, he worked for Royal Exchange Insurance company from 1967 to 1968.
From 1970 to 1973, he attended City of London College.
Tofa’s sojourn into politics started in 1976 when he was a councilor of Dawakin Tofa Local Government Council.
In 1977, he was elected a member into the Constituent Assembly.
During the Second Republic, Tofa was at various times the secretary of the Kano branch of the defunct National Party of Nigeria, NPN.
He later became the party’s national financial secretary and was a national member of the Green Revolution National Committee.
During the Third Republic, he was part of the Liberal Movement which metamorphosed to Liberal Convention when it was not registered as a political party.
In 1993, when the Babangida junta introduced the Option A4 system, Tofa was elected the NRC presidential candidate. During the party primaries, he defeated Pere Ajunwa, Joe Nwodo and Dalhatu Tafida to clinch the NRC ticket. He was an ally of Halilu Akilu, the security chief at the time.
His running mate in the election was Sylvester Ugoh, an Igbo and a former governor of the defunct Central Bank of Biafra. Both were members of the defunct National Party of Nigeria.
The Nation
