FORMER Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has received plaudits from fellow All Progressives Congress stalwarts after emerging as the party’s presidential flagbearer.
The APC National Leader emerged victorious with a total of 1,271 delegates’ votes and will represent the party in the 2023 elections.
Among the first Nigerians to congratulate the former governor was Senate President, Ahmad Lawan.
In a letter of congratulation that he personally signed, Lawan who was also an aspirant in the primary said the outcome of the election process had shown that Tinubu was the popular choice of his party.
“Your glittering track record of public service, foresight and grit in party building and administration, as well as the courage you continue to demonstrate in fighting for the entrenchment of democracy in Nigeria make you worthy of the high esteem and trust of our party members everywhere in Nigeria as exhibited at the National Convention,” the letter read in part.
Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, in a congratulatory message wrote: “I write to felicitate with you on your hard fought victory at the just concluded Presidential Primary election of our great party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“You have demonstrated once again that you are a dogged fighter and in your quest for the establishment of a democratic society, you are willing to go the whole hog.”
He added, “It is my prayer that you will ride on the crest of the momentum of this triumph to lead our party to victory in next year’s General Elections.
“On behalf of my family and our associates, I heartily congratulate you on this well deserved victory. Congratulations sir.”
On his part, Governor Umar Ganduje said Tinubu “has the capacity to provide the needed leadership that would consolidate and continue to ensure the country’s democratic gains.”
Ganduje commended President Muhammadu Buhari for providing the enabling environment that produced the standard flagbearer, the National Working Committee, the delegates and all other organ and structures of the party across the federation for the collective efforts in ensuring the success of the convention.
The governor hailed other aspirants for their remarkable sportsmanship which they displayed throughout the painstaking consultation period up to the convention and particularly Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, who submitted themselves to transparent democratic exercise.
He also called on Tinubu as party leader to “bring his political and socio-economic experience to bear on party leadership and members to close ranks and work for its victory in the forthcoming election.”
Ganduje also charged all party members to remain United and focused as the party marched with Nigerians to victory in 2023.
Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State, in a statement, said the emergence of Tinubu as the APC presidential flag-bearer for the 2023 general election is a good omen for the party and the country as a whole.
According to him, the victory shows that Asiwaju Tinubu is widely beloved and accepted within the country’s entire political spectrum, and shows his level of deep interactions and acceptance not only within the ruling APC but across Nigeria.
He said: “This victory indicates that Tinubu as a candidate is good for Nigeria, as it will foster unity, love and understanding amongst Nigerians. His electoral victory cut across all the six geopolitical zones; he had an impact in all the zones. He is the candidate to beat in the 2023 elections.
Governor Abiodun noted that Tinubu’s extensive political experience and understanding of national politics will surely come in handy when he squares up against candidates from other political parties during the 2023 presidential election.
While saluting his tenacity, courage and resilience, Abiodun expressed confidence that Tinubu will further deepen the Nation’s democratic ethos and good governance that will enhance the welfare and wellbeing of Nigerians.
The governor also commended President Muhammadu Buhari and the National Working Commitee for providing the necessary leadership that made the presidential primary election a resounding success. Governor Abiodun further commended other aspirants for their remarkable sportsmanship which they displayed throughout the process.
Abiodun urged the leadership and members of the APC to work in unison with a view to ensuring victory in the general election next year.
“We are all winners and no one is a loser in this primary. We all should work together to take Nigeria to a higher pedestal,” the statement concluded.
In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Yinka Oyebode, Governor Kayode Fayemi said Tinubu’s emergence represents the collective wish of the vast majority of members of the APC, adding that the former Lagos State Governor has proven his dedication and competence to lead the country at such an important time in history.
Fayemi, who stepped down and endorsed Tinubu at the convention, described the APC flagbearer as a “long distance runner”, who has the capacity to lead the country to greater heights come 2023.
“It is a great moment for our party,” he said. “I congratulate Asiwaju Tinubu for the well deserved victory and the leadership of the party as well as the convention committee members for a great job.
“Collectively, we shall move from this convention venue with greater determination to strengthen the party and work assiduously for the success of the party in the 2023 elections.”
Meanwhile, Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State has rejected the outcome of the presidential primary.
The Governor’s displeasure was made known via a statement issued by Yemi Kolapo, Director, Media and Publicity, Yahaya Bello Presidential Campaign Organisation.
In the statement titled, “Yahaya Bello Remains The Hero Of The Oppressed,” the Kogi State Governor decried how the democratic system in the country has been defined as “the government of the oppressors by the oppressors and for the oppressors.
“It is sad to note that those who should know and who many progressives had thought of as leaders with integrity are the ones working against the people they were (s)elected to represent for egocentric reasons.
“In this process, one leader stands out, according to the majority of Nigerians. And that leader is one that has proven to the downtrodden and those regarded as “Nigerians without surnames”, that regardless of agelong intimidation by the elite, the best of our people can stand tall without compromising the values that we should have been known for as a nation.”
Bello further revealed a gang-up against him by Northern Governors while picketing delegates “who have largely been pocketed by their paymasters and who defer to the highest bidder are made to choose flagbearers of a political party is as warped as the process itself.
“It is obvious that in a bid to prove that he is not one of them, enemies of this project, Nigeria, went beyond speaking with delegates and oiling their palms to ensure that votes that did not represent Yahaya Bello’s popularity were counted against his name. But they have unwittingly made him the hero of the moment.
“We do not have to talk much but to pray that God Himself would deliver Nigerians from the hands of enemies of democracy. Poverty is a tool they have used for long to keep Nigerians poor. At the right time, however, this jinx must break!”
