Lifestyle
Chief Fani-Kayode and Chief D.K. Olumofin at a School Visit, 1963
Veteran 1970s Juju music star, Ahuja Bello, is dead.
It was gathered that he passed away early on Monday, a day after celebrating his 83rd birthday.
His death was confirmed on Monday in a tribute post on Facebook by his daughter, Bello Festus Aderemi.
“Rest in peace my lovely dad, Alhaji Ahuja Bello.
“We love you but God loves you more,” Aderemi wrote.
His band page, with the username Ahuja Bello and His Golden Eagles Band, also confirmed the news, saying, “Though you are gone, your light continues to shine in our hearts. RIP Ahuja Bello.”
Born Ismaila Dele Bello on August 24, 1942, in Iseyin, Oyo State, Ahuja Bello was a prominent Juju musician, guitarist, and vocalist who rose to fame in the 1970s and 1980s.
He began his career as an electronic technician but later pursued his passion for music, forming his band, “Ahuja Bello and His Golden Eagles Band,” in 1976.
A respected figure in the Nigerian Juju music scene, Bello was known for his energetic performances and hit albums like Awa ti Danfo and Ariya ti de.
In 1979, he traveled to London to record Ahuja in London, where he became friends with legendary reggae star Bob Marley.
Bello’s career was reportedly cut short by a tragic accident on July 24, 1982, a month before his 40th birthday.
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The June 12, 1993, presidential election in Nigeria remains one of the most significant turning points in the nation’s democratic history. It was widely believed to have been won by Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (M.K.O.) Abiola in what observers, both local and international, described as Nigeria’s freest and fairest election. However, before the results could be officially declared, the military government of General Ibrahim Babangida annulled the election, plunging the country into a deep political crisis.
In the wake of the annulment, pro-democracy groups and activists rallied to demand the restoration of Abiola’s mandate. Among the most prominent was the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), a broad-based coalition of politicians, intellectuals, professionals, and activists united in the fight against military dictatorship and for the enthronement of democratic governance.
One of the young politicians who rose to prominence during this struggle was Bola Ahmed Tinubu, then a senator under the short-lived Third Republic. Tinubu became a member of NADECO, standing alongside other eminent figures such as:
Chief Anthony Enahoro
Chief Abraham Adesanya
Rear Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu (Rtd.)
Commodore Dan Suleiman (Rtd.)
Professor Wole Soyinka
Chief Ayo Adebanjo
Chief Ganiyu Dawodu
Chief Olu Falae
Chief Cornelius Adebayo
Chief Kudirat Abiola
Pa Alfred Rewane
Chief Bisi Akande
Dr. Amos Akingba
Chief Supo Shonibare
Chief Ayo Opadokun
Chief Ebenezer Babatope
Chief Femi Okurounmu
Chief Segun Osoba
Chief Dapo Sarumi
Chief Femi Falana (later closely associated with NADECO activities)
NADECO’s activism drew heavy repression from the military regime of General Sani Abacha, who seized power after Babangida’s exit in 1993. As the coalition intensified its campaign, members were subjected to arrests, torture, harassment, and, in some cases, assassinations. The struggle also claimed the lives of notable activists such as Pa Alfred Rewane and Chief Kudirat Abiola, whose murder in 1996 shocked the nation.
Like many of his colleagues, Bola Tinubu was forced into exile after narrowly escaping arrest. Fleeing through the Benin Republic, he eventually joined other exiled NADECO leaders abroad. From foreign soil, they launched international campaigns, drawing global attention to Nigeria’s democratic struggle and exposing the human rights abuses of the Abacha regime.
The military government branded the exiled activists as “enemies of the state,” confiscating properties and trailing them across borders. Yet, the resistance continued, sustained both at home and abroad. The struggle endured until June 1998, when General Sani Abacha’s sudden death created a turning point, opening the path for Nigeria’s eventual return to civilian rule in 1999.
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