Tinubu in the eye of the storm

• Hurdles on Tinubu’s 2023 presidential ambition

By  OLUSESAN LAOYE

Although it is not yet official, but the alleged presidential ambition of the national leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, come 2023 is an open secret. Recent events not only seem to give credence too this fact but also appear to stand against such prospect.

There is no doubt the entire country  is aware that Tinubu is strongly nursing the ambitions to rule the country in the understanding that the presidency would be  ceded to the South West as the second major party and zone in the APC, a situation which many Nigerians believed may be a mirage as  some powerful people in the North have vowed that the North was not ready to relinquish power..

However, Tinubu it was believed is daily complicating things for himself as some of his utterances on national issues have not gone down well with the opposition as well as those in his political party who believed that some of these statements by him were aimed at deriding the incumbent President to .make him look the best in the eyes of the people and to position him for the job in 2023.

His recent attack on the 8th National Assembly leadership of both chambers is now seen as another spanner in the wheels of his ambition as it has instead of helping him, created more enemies for him..

Tinubu specifically accused the tenure of Dr. Bukola Saraki and Dogara in the senate and House of Reps respectively as the worse, as they failed to cooperate with the government of President Muhammadu Buhari on many national issues especially on the budget which he said was always padded. .

This statement has brought him face to face with Saraki who has let the whole world know that Tinubu was only playing to the gallery to  boost his presidential  ambition which he has been nursing since 2014 when he mooted the idea of running with President Buhari as his vice presidential candidate.

Saraki believed that he was only taken a pound of flesh from him because he was one of the people who shot the idea down saying that Muslim-Muslim ticket could not work.

Saraki pointed out that for Tinubu to accuse them of corruption and as well as blocking   Buhari and his legislative initiatives showed that Tinubu was all out to use all means to achieve his ambition and to clinch to power. He also described Tinubu as an ingrate who does not know legislative functions,  because he was not privileged to hold any high legislative office, noting that the only opportunity he had was during the Military which was for only 22 month. He also said that Tinubu’s statement on budget padding showed how naive and ignorant he is about legislative functions.

On his part, Dogara, Speaker of the House of Reps, derided Tinubu’s power drunkenness and alluded to his certificate controversy, which, if proved may end his alleged ambition. In 1999, Tinubu was accused of presenting fake degree from the University of Chicago in U.S.A.

The National Assembly issue is not the only one that has offended the power brokers in   Nigeria. His speech during his 11th National Bola Tinubu colloquium in Abuja to celebrate his 67th birthday on valued added tax VAT angered many Nigerians and those in the business circle who attacked him and asked him to show evidence of how much tax he has paid from income tax and tax on education.  He was described as a blind man leading the blind.

His statement on tax generated so much controversy to the extent that the Presidential running mate to the Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, Mr. Peter Obi accused him of advocating what was at variance with that of the ruling party’s position “thus underscoring the uncoordinated campaign they dished out to Nigerians.”

Obi also believed that the way to shape the country and the economy was to initiate an economic policy that would create jobs and become attractive to entrepreneurs..

In the APC and among the Northern elites which he would count on for his ambition, they saw the statement as anti government and strong opposition to Buhari’s   government. A northerner Alhaji Inua Buba said that what Tinubu said totally negates the  policy of government because it came only few days after the Minister of Finance Zainab Ahmed disclosed government’s plan to increase VAT.

Some members of the party also believed that Tinubu  was directing his statement to the  Vice President Yemi Osibajo and his economic team to diminish him, the vice president, ahead of 2023 since the youths and some  elders are rooting for Osinbajo in 2023.

Other factors waiting in the wings against Tinubu include the interests of some Northern elements, like, Mallam El Rufai, Nuhu Ribadu, Sule Lamido, Dogara, Tambwal, Saminu Turaki, Kwankwaso and a host of others. It is also being argued that even if Atiku would not run, he would do everything to avenge the roles Tinubu  had played in the past and present to scuttle his chances of becoming the president.

Apart from this Tinubu would face strong opposition at home. The Afenifere which he has denigrated and dismantled is waiting for him while  groups of youth which cut across political affiliations have started gathering to back Osinbajo, whom they believed is more capable of occupying the position.

At a meeting of some youths organisations held at Ile Ife recently, Businesshallmark learnt that they are mobilising ahead of 2023 and their  preferred candidate is Yemi Osubajo. It was leant that at the meeting, they made specific reference to the case of Chief MKO Abiola and believed that Tinubu is toeing that direction and wonder what else he wants after so much wealth and  influence.

The South West leaders and even governors were said to be against his ambition. The issue also in the South West is that if he loses Osun State to the PDP, now that Oyo is gone, and there would be elections in Ondo, and Ekiti before 2023, anything could happen and baring an unforeseen situation his influence politically would have gone down.

The secretary of Afenifere Mr. Yinka Odumakin had said that Tinubu is day-dreaming as he would be disappointed. He said Tinubu believes that the Yoruba are with him, but when the time comes they will show him the atrocities and how he has betrayed them, saying that the role he played to divide Afenifere,  a common Yoruba forum who always spoke with one voice would be made known to him.

Also, Dr Yemi Farounbi said that in as much as Tinubu made impact politically, “I think he is going too far if he dabbles into the presidency”.

However, the Director of Publicity and organisation of the APC in Osun State, Barrister Kunle Oyatomi, believes that Tinubu has the right under the law to aspire to any position and that there was nothing wrong if he aspire to rule Nigeria.