The former governor of Lagos State and the 2023 presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has never betrayed Yoruba interest and he is a nationalist that believes in togetherness and betterment of Nigeria.
National Vice Chairman of APC in the South West, Isaac Kekemeke, made the disclosure on the sidelines of a meeting held at Oke-Ado, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, by the zonal executive of the party on Wednesday. Zonal leaders of the party, including the zonal publicity secretary, Chief Ayo Afolabi, were in attendance.
He reacted to a question that Tinubu has been accused by some Yoruba people of not support the cause of Yoruba race, saying: “Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu has never been known to betray Yoruba. I challenge anyone who can say there is record of him betraying Yoruba race or Yoruba nation or denying then of what rightly belonged to them to come out and say it.
‘Tinubu is a Nigerian and he is a nationalist. He is a Yoruba man. He will always fight on the side of his people for truth, rule of law, justice, fairness, progress and development.”
Kekemeke stated further that in a bid to ensure electoral victory of APC during the next year’s general elections at all levels, the zonal executive has set up three categories of committees to broker peace with aggrieved members for the party.
The first committee, according to him, is the South West APC Advisory Committee, to be chaired by former governor of Ekiti State and former Deputy National Chairman (South) of the party Otunba Niyi Adebayo, who is the Minister of Trade and Industry; and will be co-chaired by a former National Vice Chairman of the party in the South West, Chief Pius Akinyelure.
The zonal executive also set up a reconciliation committee with six sub-committees for the six states in the South West. The names of members of the committee and sub-committees have not been made public.
Kekemeke stated further that Ondo State governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN), who is the Chairman of South West Governors’ Forum and Chairman of Southern Governors’ Forum, would chair the third committee, called: Special Committee on Eminent Person’s Engagement.
Giving reasons for setting up of the third committee, he said: “We have noticed and resolved that we need every leader of our party to participate actively in the process of making this president. We believe that as many of our leaders that have not been active are with us in spirit. But we want them to be with us in body and soul.”