The current challenges bedeviling Nigeria go beyond what mere grammatical toggling can solve. We want someone who can paddle with experience and not an auxiliary orator/neophyte who has nothing to offer beyond grammar. Nigeria needs a performer. If Tinubu could manage a multi-ethnic State like Lagos for years, yet with unbroken records of excellence, then he is no doubt, a LEADER/PERFORMER with experience. Do you know how many former governors have been benched by their successors in politics? Can you boast of 3 former governors who still enjoy good relationship with their former aides? Common, some Nigerians can not even remember the names of their former governors anymore for the fact that they are no longer relevant in politics. However, the case is completely different for Tinubu. His name echoes everywhere even till now. This is as a result of the people he built in politics. One of the notable qualities people respect Tinubu for is that he doesn’t fail in his promises. It is only a liar that will claim that his witnesses live abroad. Recall that he waded in and promised Omisore to support APC for a BIG reward when PDP almost boxed the ruling party to a corner during the Osun governorship election. Though it took a while, he never disappointed him as the whole world can testify to this.
On a similar note, he once promised never to dump the party (AD) that brought him to power despite the persecution of the then President Olusegun Obasanjo. At a time when the going got tough, instead of him dumping the party when people started bowing to bandwagonry effect, he reformed it to become ACN and while all other State governors melted and collapsed their party structures into PDP, Tinubu’s Lagos became the only difference in Lagos. While others preferred to enjoy the merriments of the ruling party, Tinubu single-handedly began to build the new party till he gained some States in the South Western part of Nigeria.
Dear compatriots, reading this may be cheap, but trust me, achieving it under a regime as that of OBJ was never a case of mere grammatical expression. You may also want to be reminded that he maintained this tough movements/template under former president Goodluck till former governors like Oshiomhole of Edo, Amosun of Ogun, Mimiko of Ondo, Fayemi of Ekiti, Aregbesola of Osun, late Ajimobi of Oyo, Fashola, Ambode, and a host of other leaders across all geopolitical zones in the country has one testimony or the other to say about Tinubu on their emergence as governors in their respective States. If this is easy, you may want to charge the former governors of your State to put it to test. As a matter of fact, all former governors dream to maintain the type of cordial relationship Tinubu maintained with his successors in Lagos but they found it too difficult to achieve let alone stretch this hand of fellowship to the former/ruling governors of other states in their geopolitical zone. Tinubu did not just create this, he managed it across all geopolitical zones in the country. It takes a performer to achieve all these.
Dear compatriots, skip to 2014, Tinubu, in addition to the efforts of other leaders, struck the alliance of ACN and other regional parties in Nigeria to ensure that the then Locusts were sent packing out of Aso Rock. This unprecedented effort, no doubts, led to the political party, APC that you and I, brag about today being card-carrying members. You may want to contest this, saying you do not have any direct link with him, but whether directly or indirectly, every card-carrying member of APC in South-West, directly or indirectly, benefits from the pyrrhic efforts put in place by Tinubu. How? I am cocksure the answers would readily come to your mind- before the Savior (your leader), there was, the father (builder/initiator) of faith. Just as former governor Amosun said, we should never be ungrateful to someone who contributed to our success, as party members, it is high time we showed gratitude to the effort (man) behind the formation of our political party, APC. If we come across grammar/usage of words while solving Nigeria’s problems, we should think of inviting the likes of Soyinka, Pat Utomi, Chris Okotie, Patrick Obahiagbon, VP Osinbajo and others. However, at this critical time of our history, Nigeria needs the popular performer. Nigeria needs TINUBU.
Sunday Omosule (ANIPR) writes from Akure, Ondo State capital.
PS: The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the text belong solely to the author, and not necessarily that of the Publishers of Precision Online Newspaper.
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