So, Nigeria changed Democracy Day from May 29 to June 12 in 2018, and there’s a wild story behind it. For a long time, May 29 was a big deal because that’s when the military gave up power to civilians back in 1999 (my parents always talk about how tense things were during that time). But in 1993, something even bigger happened – Nigeria had what tons of people call the fairest election ever, and M.K.O. Abiola literally won, but never became president. The military just cancelled the whole result (like, imagine winning class president and the teachers just said, nope, forget it).

President Buhari decided that June 12 actually meant more for democracy because of those struggles and all the protests that followed. That’s why June 12 is such a big deal now – it’s not just about some government swapping hands, it’s about everyone fighting hard for democracy, risking their lives and stuff. I honestly think it’s more fair this way because it recognizes real people’s sacrifices, not just some fancy handover. Still, it’s kind of wild to think they switched the whole holiday!