Tinubu @70: Celebrating the Democracy Icon of the Fourth Republic

BISIRIYU OLAOYE

Asiwaju Bolanle Ahmed Adekunle Tinubu, the Asiwaju of Lagos, former Governor of Lagos State and National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), will clock 70 years on Tuesday, March 29, 2022.  To say he has cause to celebrate is telling the obvious as the event will feature his 13^th Clooquium at Eko Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, with the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, already agreed to be the Chairman of the occasion, while the  Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu is the chief host.

The epoch-making event, no doubt, will be a roll call of who is who in the country as, apart from President Buhari; other dignitaries slated for the occasion will dissect the emerging global development issues and the importance of good governance for Nigeria to be an influential and respected member of the international community.

The Chairman of the Media and Publicity sub-committee of the Colloquium, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, who is also the Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, stated in a statement that the Keynote Speaker, Professor Olufemi Bamiro, former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, is expected to engage the central theme, ‘Pivoting Nigeria into the new world order: Imperatives of Good Governance’, while the colloquium will also feature a panel session where some of Nigeria’s leading technology entrepreneurs will discuss “Technology, Entrepreneurship and the future of work”.

According to Omotoso, the panel discussion to be moderated by Tomilayo Akanni-Aluko will have Bosun Tijani, Chief Executive Officer of Co-Creation Hub, as the Lead Discussant. Other panelists include Samson Ogbole, Managing Director, Soiless Farms; Temie Giwa-Tubosun, Group Chief Executive, Life Bank; Kikelomo Fola-Ogunniya, Co-founder, Jand2Gidi and Lot Madaki, Chief Executive Officer, Madaki Shoes.

With this, one can see that Bola Tinubu, in whose honour the annual event is being organised, is an extraordinary statesman who has committed himself to making Nigeria one of the most prosperous nations.

The media sub-committee chair stated: “The theme speaks to the person and values of Asiwaju Tinubu. To celebrate his 70th birthday, this year’s colloquium theme is most appropriate. We are talking about an outstanding public servant, who is an advocate of good governance in Nigeria and Africa. He demonstrated this as Governor of Lagos in eight years where he laid the solid foundation for the progress and prosperity of Lagos State that we all talk about today”.

Bola Tinubu has impacted positively on the socio-economic and political growth of both human beings and the nation at large and no wonder, any venue of the occasion he organizes or attends always filled beyond capacity with his admirers both low and high showering encomiums on him. This year’s Colloquium and birthday celebrations will not be an exception for a political juggernaut and grassroots mobilser.

Tinubu’s ability to pick leaders that will excel anywhere any time, any day is unassailable. It is to his credit that those who have worked with him one way or the other are still excelling in their various callings including ministries, departments and parastatals. Professor Yemi Osinbajo; Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu; Alhaji Lai Mohammed; Babatunde Raji Fashola SAN; Akinwunmi Ambode; Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola; Princess Adejoke Oorelope-Adefulire; Senator Opeyemi Bamidele; Senator Babajide Omoworare,  Hon. James Faleke, to mention a few, have benefitted from the Jagaban’s  tutelage.

Tinubu was born on March 29, 1952 in Osun State, Nigeria. His mother, the late Abibatu Mogaji, was a trader that later became the Iyaloja-General of Nigeria.

He attended St. John’s Primary School, Aroloya, Lagos and Children’s Home School in Ibadan, Oyo State. Tinubu then went to the United States in 1975, where he studied first at Richard J. Daley College in Chicago, Illinois, and then at Chicago State University. He graduated in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting.

Tinubu worked for the American companies- Arthur Andersen, Deloitte, Haskins, & Sells, and GTE Services Corporation.  After returning to Nigeria in 1983, Tinubu joined Mobil Oil Nigeria, and later became an Executive of the company.

His political career began in 1992 when he joined the Social Democratic Party (SDP) where he was a member of the Peoples Front faction led by the late Shehu Musa Yar’Adua and made up of other politicians such as Umaru Yar’Adua (of blessed memory), Atiku Abubakar, Baba Gana Kingibe, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Abdullahi Aliyu Sumaila, Magaji Abdullahi, Dapo Sarumi and Yomi Edu. He was elected to the Senate, representing the Lagos West constituency in the short-lived Third Republic.

Tinubu became a founding member of the pro-democracy National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), a group which mobilized support for the restoration of democracy and recognition of Moshood Abiola as winner of the June 12 election. This was after the results of the June 12, 1993 presidential elections were annulled.  Following the seizure of power as military Head of State of General Sani Abacha, he went into exile in 1994 and returned to the country in 1998 after the death of the military dictator, which ushered in the transition to the Fourth Republic.

In the run-up to the 1999 elections, Bola Tinubu was a protégé of Alliance for Democracy (AD) leaders Abraham Adesanya and Ayo Adebanjo. He went on to win the AD primaries for the Lagos State governorship elections by defeating Funsho Williams and Wahab Dosunmu, a former Minister of Works and Housing. In January 1999, he stood for the position of Governor of Lagos State on the AD ticket and was elected governor.

Tinubu, alongside a new deputy governor, Femi Pedro, won re-election into office as governor in April 2003. All other states in the South West fell to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in those elections. He was involved in a struggle with the Olusegun Obasanjo-controlled Federal Government over whether Lagos State had the right to create new Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) to meet the needs of its large population. The controversy led to the Federal Government seizing funds meant for local councils in the state. During the latter part of his term in office, he was engaged in continuous clashes with PDP powers such as Adeseye Ogunlewe, a former Lagos State Senator who had become Minister of Works, and Bode George, the Southwest Chairman of the PDP.

As the 2023 elections have started gathering momentum, Asiwaju Tinubu has indicated his intention of calling the shots at the Presidency. There is no doubt on whether he will deliver or not as his political antecedents have shown that he will let his experience bear on the good governance in the country in the next political dispensation. He wants to impact positively on the generality of Nigerians through viable policies and programmes to grow the economy and lead Nigeria to greater heights.

It will be recalled that during his eight-year tenure as the number one citizen of the state, his administration initiated various reforms for the socio-economic and political developments of the state, the opportunities being enjoyed till today by the populace. His positive impacts are still being felt in the various sectors such as education, health, roads, and housing, among other social infrastructures. So, if Jagaban could do these in the State widely regarded as not only the Centre of Excellence but also still regarded as Nigeria’s economic nerve centre, there is no way he won’t replicate this at the federal level when he becomes President.

The economic blue-print of the Tinubu administration is still being implemented by not only some state governments but also being adopted by the Federal Government. This has been attested to even by President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, and former Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun. If this effort had been accepted by those who matter in the country, there is no wayTinubu will not do more than that as the President of the country.

Aligning with the postulation of a member of the National Assembly, Hon. Bolaji Yusuf Ayinla, “Nigeria will in no distant time, begin to compete with England if Asiwaju Bola Tinubu becomes the next president of the country”, because the APC National Leader has all it takes to turn the country around in just a short period of time.

As a matter of fact, since Omo Iyaloja is not just an ordinary person but a gift to the entire nation, “the indisputable capability of Tinubu to effectively manage human and material resources for visible progress stood him out as the most qualified Nigerian to be president in 2023”.

Ayinla, who ia a member of the House of Representatives, representing Mushin Constituency in Lagos, said of the Jagban Borgu: “….while serving as the Governor of Lagos State,  he brought about so many changes and recorded so many achievements for the state, especially in the area of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR). Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s qualification rests on his demonstrated capacity in deploying a mix of genius and statecraft to nurture a city on the brink into a flourishing economy. The progress in Lagos remains a visible experiment initiated by him. Nigeria has continued to shoulder the burden of the black race, and the country’s transformation into a stable economy would be a source of pride to the black man”.

The founding father of APC is a straightforward man. Jagaban tells it as it is no matter whose ox is gored or will be gored. He admits his error. He always apologises when he goofs, maybe because of his belief that to err is human and to forgive divine.

For instance, during his 12th Colloquium in 2021 to mark his 69^th birthday in Kano State, it was reported that he said 50 million youths should be recruited to join the military in assisting the security personnel to address the security challenges in the country. But the following day, Tinubu recanted, saying he goofed and that he did not mean 50 million youths but 50,000 youths.

“I goofed when I suggested that the Federal Government should recruit 50 million youths into the Nigerian Army to boost the war against insecurity in the country”, he stated.  A statement from his media office signed by Tunde Rahman, said inter alia: ……“Asiwaju seeks the expansion of security personnel by 50,000 for the armed forces not the 50 million that was mentioned in error. It was an accidental verbal mistake of which we all commit from time to time, especially when reciting a series of large numerical figures.  He did not mean 50 million, which is almost a quarter of our total population.

“The crucial matter is that Asiwaju rightly observed that such strong recruitment would serve the twin-purpose of helping to tackle unemployment while at the same time enhancing the security of every Nigerian.

“Please, forgive any confusion due to this innocent error. The most vital thing is that he set forth a wise and timely approach that would help us face two of today’s stiffest challenges. It is in the spirit that we hope you view and assess his proposal for it seeks to provide a way for more youths to participate in building a greater, safer and more prosperous country”.

Also in January this year (2023), Tinubu apologized for suggesting to a delegation of APC women leaders that their Permanent Voter’s Cards (PVCs) issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have expired.

When some APC women leaders paid him a visit in Abuja, Tinubu had said: “In case they don’t announce it to you on time, the Permanent Voter’s Card you have has expired………Yes”. But Asiwaju later recanted and apologized when he realized that he has goofed again.

“Immediately upon being apprised of this, Asiwaju apologized for the incorrect statement and felt sorry for any confusion it may have caused, his media aide, Tunde Rahman, who stated this in a statement, further said that Tinubu used the word “expired” instead of saying the “cards may have to be updated or revalidated”.

It takes the courage to do all these because some people would have heaped the blames on the pressmen under the guise that they were misquoted. He admitted his mistakes and apologized. There were other controversial issues before these that he had clarified. That is the kind of straightforward man Nigerians are looking for.

Due to this and other contributions to the socio-political and economic development of the country, Tinubu has received accolades from individuals and organizations. He was awarded the Honorary Doctor of Public Administration of Afe Babalola University of Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), and Champion Newspapers’ 2020 Democracy Icon of the Fourth Republic”..

Justifying the award, the Champion Nwespapers’ Management said, among others, that “Your contributions to the social, economic, political development and entrenchment of good governance in Lagos State in particular and the country as a whole since 1999 have been very outstanding”.

“You have also proven to be a patriot, highly-principled politician, role model, and committed democrat as leader of APC whose invaluable contributions to national discourse have been applauded by many and attracted both international and national laurels including the Jagaban of Borgu, a revered title.

“Therefore, based on your robust and progressive political antecedents and great contributions to engendering popular participation in ensuring a democratically-elected government and sustenance of the democratic governance since 1999, we hereby nominate you for the Champion Newspapers 2020 Democracy Icon of the Fourth Republic Award”, the Champion management added.

As Asiwaju Tinubu joins the league of the septuagenarians on Tuesday, March 29, 2022, I wish him long life and prosperity and more energetic years to serve his fatherland and lead Nigeria to greater heights.

Happy birthday Omo and Baba Iyaloja!!!

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