Former Minister of State for Works, Senator Dayo Adeyeye says Asiwaju Bola Tinubu fits the description of the right leader that Nigerians have been craving for.
Adeyeye is the Chairman, Planning Committee, South West Agenda for Asiwaju Tinubu 2023 (SWAGA ’23), a movement recently launched in Ibadan, Oyo State, which endorsed the former National Leader of All Progressives Congress (APC) for the 2023 presidency.
Asked if Tinubu was an acceptable candidate in the North, Adeyeye answered in the affirmative, noting that the former Lagos governor has wide acceptance across the geopolitical zones because of his antecedents.
He explained that most Nigerians just wanted a good leader irrespective of ethnicity.
According to the former Senate spokesman, “most Nigerians are looking for a leader that can really change things in the country for the better, that can really move the country forward and would really solve the myriad of problems which are confronting us as a nation.
“We in the leadership tend to exaggerate our division. We tend to play so much on the issue of religion and ethnicity. I had the privilege of working for the campaign of the late Chief Moshood Abiola in 1993. I had earlier campaigned for Chief Olu Falae and we traversed the length and breadth of the country.
Read Also: Update: How House On The Rock Pastor Akinbami Died Of COVID-19
“I saw genuine enthusiasm and affection for Falae’s candidacy throughout the length and breadth of the country. Of course, he didn’t win the primaries, the late Shehu Musa Yar’Adua was leading before General Ibrahim Babangida cancelled it.
“The late Chief Abiola came on board and he won in every area of the country and defeated his opponent in his ward in Kano.
“Most Nigerians just wanted a good leader. We all want somebody who will change the course of the downward trend in the socio-economic and political development of Nigeria and take Nigeria to a higher level.
“Tinubu will be acceptable to all the geopolitical zones.”
He explained that Tinubu is the best the South-West geopolitical zone could offer to replace President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023.
Adeyeye said, “This is because he has paid his dues. He was governor for eight years and everybody saw his enviable performances and most people have seen his capabilities.
“During those times, he operated an open-door policy that accommodated all the various ethnic groups in Lagos State. Lagos is the most diverse state in Nigeria. Every village in the country is represented in Lagos. There were no cases of discrimination; Lagos doors were opened to everybody. Tinubu’s government embraced everybody. Everybody that came to Lagos carried out their daily activities under a peaceful atmosphere.
“In Lagos, we didn’t see the kinds of ethnic purges that are being experienced in some parts of Nigeria. He ensured fairness and equity in Lagos for everybody. He even brought people from other ethnic groups to governance in Lagos. He appointed them into important positions in his government and that trend has continued in Lagos till today.
“So, Nigerians know that this man is highly detribalised, open-minded and ready to embrace every ethnic group in Nigeria. He has planted seeds round the whole country which are now bearing fruits in all the states of Nigeria.
“He has been helpful to so many politicians and individuals in various parts of the country who are now ready to support him. They saw this as a payback time and they want to show their gratitude to him as they did for the late Abiola in 1993.”