Presidential election: Tinubu demands for Atiku’s endorsement 

Precious Yusuf

The All Progressives Congress(APC) presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu,threw a jab at Atiku Abubakar,his main contender for the presidential position on Monday,asking Atiku to support him as he had once done for him in the past. 

He called out the Peoples Democratic Party candidate for playing the ethnic card ahead of the 2023 presidential election.

Tinubu revealed this at an interactive session with the Arewa Joint Committee which was held at the Arewa House, Kaduna, on Monday. 

He recognized himself as a pan-Nigerian, having traversed all parts of the country successfully. 

“Atiku started from Uyo and now ended up in Kaduna and you are speaking to the North that you are the right candidate for the North; how do we reconcile that? You have lost the election,” he threw in the face of his counterpart from PDP. 

Tinubu went further to say that the PDP presidential candidate ought to have endorsed him, seeing as he had supported him in 2007 for the presidency instead of competing with him for the same position years later. 

“It’s payback time. Let Atiku endorse me instead of campaigning in Kaduna. I supported him in 2007,” he added.

The former Lagos governor told the gathering that comprised of  the Arewa Consultative Forum, Northern Elders Forum, Sir Ahmadu Bello Memorial Foundation,  Jamiyyar Matan Arewa, the Center for Historical Development Research (Arewa House) as well as the Arewa Research and Documentation Project, that he was also one of them.

“I am one of you. Yes. I am a city boy from Lagos,” he added.

Tinubu then recited the old National Anthem…’Though tribe and tongue may differ…’  to buttress his point of not portraying himself as an ethnic champion as his other opponent but rather a true Nigerian belonging to all ethnicity.

He said under his government, the rag-tag bandits terrorising the region would cease to exist. 

Speaking further,  Tinubu said if elected as President, he would mobilise all assets within the country’s national power to secure Nigeria in all aspects.

“As you are aware, security is a function of resources. I am committed to mobilising all assets within our national power to secure Nigeria. We did this in Lagos through many initiatives, especially the Security Trust Fund, through which we addressed many needs of our security forces which helped to sanitise Lagos State.

“As you may recall, when I assumed office as governor in 1999, the situation I met was basically a case of banditry where urban gangs ruled the streets.

“I restored law and order, tamed what could have been a huge ethnic war and made Lagos one of the safest states in Nigeria. I will replicate that across the country,” he said.