One of the national leaders of the All Progressives Congress and a presidential aspirant Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on Thursday, shattered Nigeria’s political space by recounting how he led the ‘war’ that made President Muhammadu Buhari victorious in the presidential election of 2015 after previous failures.
In a tell tall, Tinubu, who spoke at the presidential lodge in Abeokuta, while addressing the APC delegates ahead of the party’s primary, declared that without him, Buhari would not have become the president in 2015.
The former governor recalled how he visited Buhari at his residence in Katsina State to brace him up for the 2015 presidential election after APC was founded on 6 February 2013 from a merger of the country’s three largest opposition parties.
Tinubu, who spoke in Yoruba, said he motivated Buhari who had almost given up on his presidential bid at that time after losing three times. He said he promised Buhari to bring the votes of the South West region to the table.
In his words, “You have not heard this from me before. This is the first place I am saying this.
“If not for me that led the war front, Buhari won’t have emerged. He contested first, second and third times, but lost. He even said on television that he won’t contest again.
“But I went to his home in Katsina, I told him you would contest and win, but you won’t joke with the matters of the Yorubas.
“Since he has emerged I have not been appointed Minister. I didn’t get not request a contract. This time, it’s Yoruba turn and in Yorubaland, it’s my tenure.”
Speaking further, the former Governor revealed some blocs rose against him in the build up to the 2015 presidential election, making him lose out of the Vice-Presidential ticket on the grounds of a Muslim-Muslim ticket.
He said Buhari had offered him a running mate ticket, but some stakeholders shot the move.
The former governor also said when he was asked to submit three names for running mate, he was the one that pencilled Yemi Osinbajo for the Vice presidential candidate.
He continued, “since the time we started with the Action Congress, Action Congress of Nigeria, and now the All Progressives Congress, I wanted to contest for president that time.
“This is me telling you between me and God Almighty, Buhari called me to be his Vice President. He said because the first time he contested, he picked Okadigbo, flamboyant, catholic, but Nigerians didn’t vote for him.
“The second time, he picked another Igbo, Omesioke, Nigerians didn’t vote for him, that if he goes to bring the Pope to run as his vice, Nigerians won’t vote for him, “but you, Bola Tinubu, you have six governors, you have never lost an election before, come and be my vice”.
“He knew all the calculations then favoured us, that is why he wanted me as his vice, but I told him to let us build the party first. And when we finished building the party after we brought in people from the PDP, Saraki now saw that those from the PDP will not get anything if Buhari, a Muslim becomes the president and me, also a Muslim becomes his vice, he won’t get the senate president and the senate president cannot also be a Muslim, that was how they started the campaign of calumny against me.
“And I told them that I have a candidate that is a Christan that I can nominate so that the party will not break, that was how I nominated Vice President Yemi Osinbajo. I surrendered my right to him (Osinbajo).
“I was asked to submit three names, Yemi Cardozo, Wale Edun, and Yemi Osinbajo, but I told them if I submit three names, they will play a game, they may make it four and pick the fourth one. I gave them one name and that was Osinbajo.”
Speaking on why he is the best choice among other APC presidential aspirants in South West, he said, “it is my time, I’m educated, I’m experienced. I have been serving people for a long time, bring me the presidency, it is my turn.”
