Former Governor of Ogun State, Olusegun Osoba, has declared that President Bola Tinubu has the support of political leaders in the southwest to become the Nigerian leader.
According to Osoba, it was in 2007 that leaders of the region agreed to push Tinubu from Lagos politics to national politics after his tenure as the Lagos State Governor.
Osoba made this statement at the All Progressives Congress (APC) South West Zone Assembly meeting held over the weekend at Eko Hotels and Suites, Lagos.
He added that Tinubu has the support of the political leaders to contest for another term when his current tenure expires in 2027.
“Bola didn’t make himself the President of Nigeria; we did.
“Seventeen years ago, in 2007, after his tenure as the governor of Lagos State, we gathered at a luncheon organized by Alhaji Hamsa, our leader in the South West at that time. It was at that meeting we collectively decided that Bola should move from Lagos politics to the national stage, to represent the interests of the Yoruba people at the topmost level of Nigerian politics,” Osoba said in a video which has gone viral on the X platform.
Going down memory lane, the former Governor recalled political figures from the Yoruba race who aspired for the presidency but were unsuccessful.
“Many of us here today worked tirelessly to support the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s quest for the presidency, but he wasn’t allowed to get there.
“Similarly, we rallied behind the late MKO Abiola’s presidential ambition, but we lost him, and with him, the opportunity. They killed many of us because of our mission to make this country better. But we thank God that some of us are still alive to witness Bola Tinubu’s success.,” Osoba said.
He pleaded that whatever shortcomings might have been observed in Tinubu’s leadership should be forgiven, and he should be given a second term.
“Now that Bola Tinubu is there, I want to plead with all of you to accept his shortcomings. He will do better. After his first four-year term, he will serve another four years as a Yoruba son,” he said.
Osoba thereafter, passed a vote of confidence on Tinubu’s leadership on behalf of the group.
“The South West Assembly’s message is clear – the Yoruba leadership stands united behind Tinubu’s presidency and remains confident in his ability to deliver on his promises during his tenure,” the APC chieftain submitted.