From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
Former governor of Bauchi State Isa Yuguda has alluded that it will be tantamount to blasphemy for Nigerians to reject the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as a special God-sent gift to the country.
He spoke at the second edition of a symposium on dissecting the Asiwaju Manifesto tagged Renewed Hope 2023: Action Plan for a Better Nigeria, organised by the APC Professional Forum in Abuja on Wednesday.
Describing the APC presidential candidate as an anti-corruption crusader, he argued that having turned around Lagos, Tinubu poses the requisite qualities to fight corruption and take Nigeria to the next level.
His words: “I want to remind all our participants that we have a herculean task before us and the task is to deliver Asiwaju. We need not continue to drum it into the ears of Nigerians who Asiwaju and Shettima are.”
“We have a God-given team in them. They have everything clearly spelt out in the Bible and Koran. They have all it takes as leaders. As human beings, the Almighty God will not come down to tell us the requirements of the person we should put forward as leaders. If we dare make mistakes, the consequences are there for us.
“We will not give the excuse that we are not guided. And those of you who call yourselves religious leaders, I believe all Nigerians are religious, it is clearly defined as to who the society should go for as the person who will ensure justice and equity.
“These requirements of a leader from the Almighty God are not different from Muslims and Christians. He said anybody that can guarantee justice and equity should be the one we should push forward. That person is Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“It will amount to blasphemy if we turn our faces against him because if you believe in God, you should know that God has selected him for us. He is an anti-corruption crusader, and everybody knows that. If there was corruption in Lagos, it would not have been what it is today. There can never be progress anywhere there is corruption,” he said.
Enumerating his qualities further, Yuguda said: “I have highlighted those qualities Tinubu has but for purposes of emphasis, I will repeat that he is a man of God, a thoroughbred professional, highly disciplined, humble, educated, and above all, high moral standard.
“This is somebody who ensured justice and equity as a governor of Lagos state which is a mini Nigeria because it houses the most sophisticated Nigerians and human beings on earth.
“If he was able to manage that state with heterogeneous society and made it possible for them to come together to leave in peace, promote interactions and incentives for growth and development.
“Every Nigerian must believe that God has already identified him for us. He will turn Nigeria into what he did in Lagos. We can see those qualities in him, especially being able to relate to every part of human society.
“As a highly experienced politician, we need him in the country today. He has the capacity as a politician to manage Nigeria. Asiwaju is a sincere man who wants to make an impact,” he noted.
Equally speaking in his goodwill message, former deputy governor of Anambra State, Nkem Okeke, frowned at the derogatory descriptions of the APC presidential candidate.
“Tinubu is a man who tries to develop talent. That is what makes a leader. That is what we have in this man. People talk about his age, his health. And I just say to myself, well, people will always find a reason to be against someone. If you look at developed countries, like the United States, how old is Biden, President Theodore Roosevelt was in a wheelchair when he was president of the United States, wasn’t he?
“The point is, what a president needs is to be able to use this black hole to be able to assemble the right team, people of honour, people of integrity and do what is right for this nation. My prayer is that all of us will continue to work for that day,” said.
