By B. O. Laoye for NigeriaNewsAbroad
The crowd that greeted the rally of Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos on Saturday, November 26, at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere, Lagos, Nigeria, proved again that the former Lagos State governor is still in firm control of the reins of politics in the state.
It was also a significant boost to his presidential bid.
Tinubu ruled Lagos for eight years, and he is still relevant as the kingmaker who determines who gets what politically in the state.
While Tinubu is still waxing very strong in Lagos, some of his contemporaries in politics and even as governors have gone out of the reckoning. They are no more politically or otherwise relevant in their respective domains.
Although Tinubu remains relevant in the scheme of things in Lagos, that venerable status did not come on a platter of gold; he needed a lot of courage and bravery to navigate through the odds and quirky turns of Nigerian politics for him to hold his head above water at this time and stand triumphant among his peers.
In addition, Tinubu’s much-vaunted presidential ambition and his subsequently clinching the APC ticket for the presidential race did not as well come overnight. Those feats are symbolic of what the APC presidential flagbearer had been building for years within Lagos and the entire South West. His primary constituency includes vital human and political resources and an enviable political structure that transcends Lagos.
Tinubu, who started his political journey as a Senator and later a governor, has remained relevant due to his sagacity and much-talked-about ability to foresee the future while also working towards achieving those ideals that subsequently get transformed into reality.
While the governor of Lagos State and his colleagues in the South West, under the Alliance for Democracy (AD), fell for the antics of the then President Olusegun Obasanjo, based on the tribal sentiment, to bail him out for a second term in office, Tinubu saw the danger ahead and warned his colleagues to shun the tribal feeling. For many months at that time, he remained the only governor of the six in the South West, who did not fall in line with his colleagues and instead shunned the fatal bait dangled by Obasanjo,
When those who bowed to the deceit of Obasanjo eventually lost out, Tinubu stood firm and later became the rallying point of his counterparts in AD. They all stuck with him, having realised their mistakes and together, formed the Action Congress (AC), later Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), to wrestle power back from Obasanjo in the South West.
Being the arrowhead of that feat, with his considerable resources pumped into the project, which was used to build men across the Region, his relevance heightened. That pedigree made his party, the ACN, a significant factor in the formation of the All Progressives Congress, where he is now flying his ticket to rule Nigeria.
Asuwaju Bola Tinubu being a fighter, played the “roforofo fight” when the North wanted to edge him out of the Presidential race. At his party, he shows the kind of person he is made of by bulldozing his way to get the ticket.
Since after the primary, he has been moving around the whole of Nigeria, building contacts and oiling his presidential bid.
Since then,, he has become the most controversial of all the Presidential candidates, with one issue or the other to contend with, and a man whose actions, utterances and movements are watched and given different interpretations regarding how people perceived them.
If the whole of Lagos now stood to honour him as a Presidential candidate at a mother of all rallies, there should not be any ambiguity in saying it was a great honour well deserved.
As a political observer commented about the market closure for the rally, he argued that if the market did not shut for Tinibu in Lagos, who else would the market be closed for?
He said it has come to a stage now that the South West must realize what they have, arguing that if the South West could not get the presidency this time around, there would be significant problems for the Region in the political schemings of Nigeria.
As a sign of solidarity, a crowd of people converged at the Teslim Balogun Stadium as early as 7 pm and were jubilating frenzy. They were undaunted till 2: PM when Tinubu and influential personalities arrived at the stadium.
It was a day when he showed the whole world and his opponents that Lagos is no go area for them.
While speaking at the rally he castigated the Presidential candidate of the PDP saying, Atiku Abubakar has outlived relevance in chase for presidency and Promised to run all inclusive government.
He called Atiku an ungrateful person. According to Tinubu if there any one who should be grateful to him , it is Atiku.
“I am repeating it again, Nigerians should reject the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, because the party failed to deliver dividends of democracy to Nigerians for 16 years it governed the country.”
Giving Atiku a dress down, Tinubu said: “I know one selfish man who has been running since 1999, that’s, Atiku. He contested on the PDP platform and also contested on the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) platform. He is ungrateful and now it is time you tell him through your vote that he should go and rest.”
“Use your Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) to flog and retire him. Don’t listen to him, I read what he said this morning and he claimed he is running to better Nigeria’s future, whereas they were there for 16 years; they gave you estimated billing, they didn’t remember Badagry Road, they forgot the East-West road, they forgot Kafanchan, Sokoto, Kaduna roads. They forgot the Second Niger Bridge. They paid evil for good gestures, they
Tinubu, therefore, urged electorate to use their Permanent Voter Card, PVC, to permanently, retire Atiku in the February 2023 presidential poll and vote massively for APC for progressive, socio-economic revolution and all inclusive governance in Nigeria.
He however, talked about the insinuations that he would be killed, saying, that the thought, was a mere fantasy. According to him, “I can not be killed”
He, said, “I will form a progressive government with massive investment in education, health, infrastructure, and job creation if elected as president. I am assuring Nigerians of better days ahead.” He added that what has given him joy is the fact that his presidential bid is being fortified by the APC functionaries at all levels.
He pointed that all his programmes and activities as President of Nigeria, would be based on the need to entrench equity and fairness in the country.
Tinubu who also emphasized the notion being expressed about his being killed, astonished the crowd when he rendered the song about death which his late mother Abibatu Mogaji used to sing, in the presence of thousands of supporters, who were delighted to hear him sing, in his comedian tone.
He said “my mother cherished this song so much in her days, when she is addressing, large gathering of people. The song in Yoruba is…” Dagunro o se pa, ipa te pa tete, e ma pa dagunro, dagunro o se pa,” which literarily means, “Dagunro is unkillable. The manner of death you rained on Spinach, never visit it on Dagunro.”” This is an indication that if i am. in office, people should not even make any attempt to kill me as they have done to others because, l am untouchable.”
On the President , he said “I specially thank President Muhammadu Buhari for the unprecedented federal support and commitment to Lagos State. We have come a long way from Presidents whose sole obsession was to capture or conquer Lagos in do-or-die fashion, to a President who loves the state greatly and is keen to see it do very well.”
According to him, “Lagos has benefited tremendously in terms of infrastructure development, whether it is the Lagos-Ibadan Railway line, or the Apapa-Oshodi-Oworonsoki Expressway, the revamped National Theatre, the new International Airport Terminal or the support that has made the Lekki Deep Sea Port possible and the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Plant, as well as the Red Line of the Lagos Metro, which is sharing part of the Federal corridor.
Tinubu also called on Lagosians to vote for Governor Babajide Sanwo-olu and his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, for second term.
“Dear Lagosians, my appeal to you today, is to ask you to renew the mandate of Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Kadiri Obafemi Hamzat for another four years. Do not let the execution and implementation of the bold vision of more than two decades be aborted or suspended.”
Youths and students you must vote for Sanwo-Olu and Hamzat
The national chairman of the party, Abdullahi Adamu who was happy about the turn out in Lagos for the APC said Nigerians should vote for the APC presidential candidate, saying , “It is not over until it is over. For what we have seen, Asiwaju Tinubu is the president in waiting.”
The Director General of the APC presidential campaign council and Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong said the turn out of people at the rally, showed that Lagosians are solidly behind Tinubu.
“The election is as good as won, we are looking forward to February 25, 2023, when we would have the victory and we are praying to God for that.
“On behalf of the campaign council, we thank you Lagosians for giving us the best candidate and the most suitable person to succeed President Muhammdu Buhari in May 2023 by the grace of God.
“Among those who are seeking to govern the country, Asiwaju stands taller than all of them. His record of performance in Lagos stands him out as a good manager of people and resources who can make something out even in the most difficult situation. He has demonstrated that he can take Nigeria to greater heights through ideas and assembling of best
In his contribution, the chairman of the Progressives Governors Forum (PGF) and Kebbi State Governor, Abubakar Bagudu pointed out that 22 governors of the ruling party are behind Tinubu and they will make sure that they do everything in their respective states to ensure that the APC comes victorious come February 2023.
“I urge all of us to vote for him for the right reasons. Our party believes in Tinubu. Nigeria in the last seven years has been challenged by the pandemic and international economic downturn. Our party battled two recessions and COVID. All governors have had a taste of what it is to battle a challenging economy but Tinubu had battled a similar challenge before and he has proven capable on how to take us out of the challenges.
“He left a better Lagos State after his tenure as governor, it was more developed and more internationally renowned. He gave more opportunities to many. I remember when I used to live in Surulere and I know how it was a challenge to cross Apogbon bridge, area boys would knock on vehicle doors but when Tinubu took over the governance of Lagos, he saw the humanity in them and built them to be useful for the society.
“Today the country is facing challenges in banditry and Tinubu will include everyone as he has done before in Lagos. The 21st century needs leaders who can incorporate others. There is no presidential candidate that will come anywhere near the qualities of Tinubu and Kashim Shettima. That is what Buhari and our party saw in him. We urge you to take the message home so that he can emerge as the president in 2023. “We are here to energise the base, to rally the base, this is not the real campaign. Everybody here is Batified, we are here to showcase ourselves. There is a small group outside in any election, they are called the undecided voters, they are called the swing voters. I want to talk to those swing voters through you our members because once you are energised, they will be energised, they will ask you lots of questions, there is something called frequently asked questions.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, called on the electorate in the South east and South-south to vote for Tinubu.
On the , “Frequent asked questions raised by the govermor of Kebbi State Gbajabiamila in his usual delightful jokes and smiles said, “When they ask you who is Tinubu, tell them,” “Tinubu is the greatest politician in modern day Nigeria politics. How old is he? Tell them that he is the age his mother said he is and if they doubt it, they should go and meet his mother to confirm. If they ask about his education? Tell them that I said he is more educated than all the contestants put together.
“If they say he is wanted in America? Don’t argue with them, tell them that the America have said repeatedly that they don’t know what they are talking about. On Corruption? Tell them he is the most investigated presidential candidate in the history of Nigeria and nothing has been found on him: On Muslim-Muslim ticket: Tell them God is moving mysteriously in ways that they cannot understand, that God is about to do something in Nigeria. Tell them in Shettima, God is about to deliver the scripture of the rejected stone that became the cornerstone.
“What has he done to develop Nigeria? Tell them he has developed men and women who in turn have developed Nigeria. Tell them to give you one name of any other candidate that has developed men and women of consequence in today’s Nigeria socio-economic development.”
In his welcome address, the governor of Lagos state, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, thanked Tinubu for the foundation he laid in the state and the legacies he left behind as governor, saying he is the right man for the presidency in 2023.
Dignitaries at the rally, inçlude the Minister of Works and former Governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Raji Fashola; Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed; Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Sunday Dare; and former Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi.Others are, Governors of Kwara, Abdulrahman Abdulrazak, Kebbi, Atiku Bagudu, Kaduna, Nasir El-rufai and Ogun, Dapo Abiodun.