FG Declares June 13 Public Holiday
The federal government of Nigeria declared June 13 a public holiday to celebrate Democracy Day in 2022.
This might come as a surprise to many people because June 13 neither has a history of being a public holiday in the country nor is it tied to any significant event in Nigeria. However, the 2022 Democracy Day anniversary was supposed to be marked on June 12 but since that date fell on a Sunday, the federal government then shifted the celebration to Monday, June 13.
Rauf Aregbesola, then Minister of Interior, extended his congratulations to Nigerians on the occasion, which commemorated the June 12, 1993, presidential election won by MKO Abiola but annulled by the regime of Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida. Aregbesola encouraged Nigerians to reflect on the country's journey toward establishing a democratic order and to remember the sacrifices made by patriots.
June 12 falling on a Sunday is not a regular occurrence, hence it is worth noting the 2022 date which was the very first time Nigeria commemorated Democracy Day on June 13, happening just a few years after former President Muhammadu Buhari's government changed the date from May 29 to June 12 in honour of Abiola.
Killer Of Martin Luther King Jr. Recaptured
Also on this day in 1977, James Earl Ray- an American criminal and fugitive known for assassinating Martin Luther King Jr.- was recaptured after he and six other inmates escaped from detention. Ray had earlier been convicted of the murder of King in Memphis, Tennessee, and subsequently put into custody.
However, he was apprehended at London Heathrow Airport while trying to flee the United Kingdom to Brussels using a fake Canadian passport. He was nabbed after authorities discovered he had an additional passport under a different name.
The UK swiftly extradited him to Tennessee. Following his escape attempt to evade justice, an additional year was added to Ray's 99-year prison sentence, making it 100 years in total. He was 41 years old at the time and it is not clear if he would actually complete his jail term but he had to pay for his wicked deed of cutting short the life of King in his prime.
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