Bola Ahmed Tinubu, The King of Lagos State Politics

In 1999, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu was elected Governor of Lagos State. His then party, the Alliance for Democracy (AD) produced all the governors of the South West.
By 2003, Tinubu was the only governor left in the AD. He was under pressure to decamp but he stayed. He built the party and it became stronger.
For the eight years that he ruled Lagos, he hired several guys to work with him. I think he carefully picked them. Apart from using them to work in his government, he also groomed them for the future.
Eight years down the line, see where those Tinubu guys are today -
1. Prof Yemi Osinbajo, SAN was Tinubu's Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice. He is today, Nigeria's Vice President.
2. Rauf Aregbesola was Tinubu's Commissioner for Works. Today he is serving his second tenure as Governor of Osun State. . 3. Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN was Tinubu's Chief of Staff and successor in office. He is today Nigeria's Minister of Power, Works and Housing.

4. Alhaji Lai Mohammed was Tinubu's first Chief of Staff. He is today, Nigeria's Minister of Information.
5. Babatunde Fowler was appointed by Tinubu as Chairman of the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service. Today, he is the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service.
At the National Assembly, there are countless "Tinubu boys" who have occupied and are still occupying seats till today.
Since 1999, the Tinubu camp has produced almost 98% of the members of the National Assembly from Lagos State.
Forget politics, this man is a political enigma.
Rewind to 1999, I am sure most of us have forgotten the names of the People who were elected Governors then. Some of them have gone out of circulation. Some are gasping for breath politically. Indeed, most of them are no longer relevant today.
Who still remembers Mbadinuju of Anambra State, Jolly Nyame of Taraba, Mohammed Lawal of Kwara, Segun Osoba of Ogun, Attahiru Bafarawa of Sokoto, Achike Udenwa of Imo, Victor Attah of Akwa Ibom, Orji Uzor Kalu of Abia? That one has lost two consecutive senatorial elections.
But Tinubu has not only managed to remain extremely relevant, he has continued to control Lagos politics 100%. Not only that, he manages to carry his boys along and today they occupy critical positions in our national life.
Take it or leave it, Tinubu is today, Nigeria's most powerful politician. It didn't just happen by chance. He worked very hard for it. Very very hard.
The hallmark of a true leader is not just the ability to rule well but also the ability to nurture and groom his associates.
Oga Tinubu, TUALE SIR!!!

Prof. Wole Soyinka's tribute to Sen. Asiwaju Tinubu.

"I do not admire Tinubu because he is a saint. I do not admire Tinubu because he is from the south. I do not admire Tinubu because he is a Yoruba. If I want saints, I will proceed to heaven not on earth. Every human is fallible. I admire Tinubu because; He saved Nigeria from the danger of falling into "one party state". He has nurtured many renowned National successors. He listened to the voice of the masses to surrender his personal ambition at the most critical moment. He strategically terminated PDP 60 years life spam in 16 years. The robust critic and critique we are enjoying today is because Tinubu aligned himself to the masses to return the power to them. Tinubu has the option of joining the PDP elites to hold us hostage for another decade but he gave his all to the masses to dethrone the elites. Political juveniles believed that APC won because of the votes from the North. No!!!, APC victory was cemented the day PMB and Asiwaju resolved to work together. Asiwaju and PMB almost became a Nomadic by visiting every human that can help midwife Nigeria
salvation. Those Nomadic Almajiri walk later brought salvation to us. God willing, PMB is the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Anybody, any cabal, any Viju milk activist, attempting to humiliate Asiwaju must have me to contend with. An average PDP man is sad with Asiwaju because he brought them to their knee. If anyone thinks that bringing down Asiwaju is his project, that mission will not only crash but it will boomerang. Don't tell me he is overbearing, your
"underbearing" mentors were nowhere to be found when this Country was lying critically at the intensive care of the universe. Recall my first line, Asiwaju is not a saint. Stop demonising what you admire out of envy. Even your mentors admire him.
He owns Lagos! I hear you! Ask your grand father and parents how they acquired your so called "family
land". Is it God that allocated it to them?
You are terrorizing your neighbours and village with your kpof-kpof kobo yet you criticise a man that is naturally addicted to technocrats irrespective of their tribe or Religion.
Hmmmmm. I don talk am ooo, Asiwaju is not a political office holder oooo. Please let him be. He is evil, I agree, but we need more of him than a your a saintly specie. Dear Asiwaju, the gentle stride of a tiger is not a symbol of a cowardice".... Prof Wole Soyinka.

Prof Soyinka denies eulogizing Tinubu, says tribute concocted

INT

Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka has denied a report attributed to him extolling the virtues of a former governor of Lagos State and chieftain of the ruling All Progressive Congress, Bola Tinubu.

A recent online report had quoted Mr. Soyinka as admiring the former governor’s maturity and political sacrifice for “saving Nigeria from the danger of falling into one party state”.

The online report also quoted Mr. Soyinka as saying, among other things, that Mr. Tinubu had “nurtured many renowned national successors” and surrendered his ambition for President Muhammadu Buhari.

“Political juveniles believed that APC won because of the votes from the North. No!!!, APC’s victory was cemented the day Muhammadu Buhari and Asiwaju Tinubu resolved to work together,” the false report said.

According to the concocted report, the Nobel Laureate said, “Tinubu has the option of joining the PDP elites to hold us hostage for another decade but he gave his all to the masses to dethrone the elites.”

But Mr. Soyinka, a professor emeritus, in an e-mail sent to PREMIUM TIMES on Thursday, refuted the entire report, saying he had never said what was attributed to him.

“It is difficult to prescribe for the sort of mind that finds itself so inadequate that it must foist its opinions on others, and with such confident sense of impunity. Kindly assist me in letting the public know that I am not in anyway connected with the publication that has just been forwarded to me…

“I can only yet again recommend my recent “occasional” publication – The Republic of Liars – to the public as a cautionary tract, while the growing population of victims await the routine descent of the full operational wrath of Internet policing on all impudent impersonators,” Mr. Soyinka said.

ALL NIG

fear and ALL NIGERIAN WOMEN MUST READ THIS PIECE.

"What Borno man saw in Remi Tinubu four days ago

While in Lagos four days ago, I saw and monitored something really strange in Senator Oluremi Tinubu, wife of National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

But before going into that Wednesday, November 25, 2015 experience, let me share that I hail from Zamfara State even though passionately working in Borno State. I’m a young journalist by education and profession, have practiced in the north and the southern parts of Nigeria for a major Newspaper. I’m so proud of my profession.

Given my kind of job, I have met different categories of persons from those at the bottom to those at the top whether as news makers, news sources, witnesses or for social and other human interactions.

For the purpose of this small piece, I want to make reference to my interactions with VIPs, the ‘Ogas at the top’. Some times, VIPs or important personalities as one may choose to call them, invite journalists to their homes to grant interviews or hold press briefings while in not too often cases, the journalists themselves request for interviews at homes of VIPs or to source information that can make or add up to major news items. These mostly happen during weekends, outside working hours or when VIPs want to avoid office interferences. Now, in the course of meeting these VIPs, I had at different times come across their wives too.

One common feature in the wives of many VIPs is their display of authority. One minute contact with them tells you they own the house because as they step out, everyone around feels uneasy. Some, if not many wives of VIPs represent
fear and danger. They are regarded as angels of death by domestic helps i.e drivers, cooks, gardeners, cleaners and aides to the boss himself. Visitors tend to avoid wives of VIPs except certain class of visitors that are very well known to the VIPs’ wives. Many times, wives of VIPs as I have seen them, are emperors.

They harass aides and house helps with commands that are designed to make
aides develop running stomach. They are feared so much that house helps celebrate when they travel or stay out for long. However, I have also come across some very humble and hospitable wives of VIPs. One of them is the
wife of former Minister of Police Affairs, Adamu Maina Waziri. That woman is completely humble and kind from my point of view. I met her three times: in 2006, 2007 and 2010. But three days ago, I saw something entirely different in another VIP’s wife.

On return to Lagos last Wednesday, after traveling to Ikenne for the funeral of H.I.D Awolowo earlier in the day, six Governors, Kashim Shettima of Borno, Yari of Zamfara, Tambuwal of Sokoto and their colleagues from Jigawa,
Kebbi and Cross River followed national leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to his residence at Bourdillon road in Ikoyi. I was there as an aide to Governor Shettima without knowing I would be compelled to write this piece.
Soon after the bus conveying the dignitaries arrived Asiwaju’s residence, I saw Senator Oluremi Tinubu rushing out of the bus, walking fast almost with so much focus, it was clear she had something in mind. She walked ahead
of her husband and all the Governors. She was wearing a light blue wrapper with pictures of the late H.I.D Awolowo which was worn by majority of sympathizers at the funeral. It was ‘Ashiobi’ (ceremonial uniform, usually for
one occasion).

Asiwaju followed up and stepped into the house alongside the six Governors. While the Governors went into an inner parlor beyond the main and bigger
living room, I saw Mrs Oluremi Tinubu went straight to the dining area located by the left side on entering the main living room. Without even changing into normal dress, away from the ‘Ashiobi’, the first thing she did was to
start cleaning dishes, I watched her cleaned over ten
dishes without any ‘ajebota-like-attitude’.

Then, she started rearranging food items set by aides on the dining table. I took exceptional notice of how she was working with house helps, I saw so much willingness, freedom and excitement on the faces of those helps. I noticed that
whenever she wanted to ask them to do anything at all, she would start by saying, ‘jowo’ – the Yoruba way of saying ‘please’ and after they did anything she asked them to do, she repeatedly and naturally said, ‘O se’ meaning
‘thank you’. She effectively combined humility, politeness and efficiency in managing her home. In less than five minutes of her arrival, Oluremi had set the table.

One Governor I wouldn’t mention, sneaked onto the dining table very quickly. Asiwaju sighted him and jokingly said, “Your Excellencies, one Governor is cheating all of us on the dining table”. The Governors happily and I say, so
freely, walked to the dining area onto the waiting cheerfulness of Mrs Tinubu who practically left no one in doubt that she was very excited to serve. She coordinated the lunch with so much passion like you would think of a typical and very dedicated and polite Nigerian woman that manages her own restaurant and doing everything to satisfy customers.

My initial thought was that Mrs Tinubu was being dutiful to her husband’s special guests but then I saw her carry about four used glasses. Do you know who used those glasses she picked? She actually picked them from the
visitors’ waiting parlour which was by the right after a security scanner and those glasses were used by security aides to Governors. She insisted on picking the glasses even when the security aides were hesitant. Importantly, one could see that she was not faking her actions, she was unconsciously being herself.

For almost two hours, Mrs Oluremi Tinubu walked around doing things herself and cheerfully directing her aides to meet the needs of guests. Oluremi was everywhere including outside asking if food was served drivers and police escorts.

I saw her around 2:55pm carrying a tray with tea cups and saucers. She went into an inner parlour with the tray. She must have gone to serve the Governors and her husband. I noticed also that she took special interest in serving and interacting with a Senator from Borno State who was there with the Governor. Oluremi was obviously passionate about her colleague in the Senate.

After she had served tea, I spotted her talking to one of her house helps asking him to serve everyone another round of drinks. As she gave them tasks, I could see that the workers were happy with her. Some of them were even teasing her. She was behaving like a mother in the midst of her loving adult children on a happy day. The interaction between Oluremi and her aides was something
so uniquely interesting. While still admiring Oluremi’s hospitality that Wednesday, a senior aide to Governor Shettima told me about his previous encounter with the former Lagos first lady and wife to one of Nigeria’s most
influential politicians, on Saturday, February 8, 2014.

“If you remember, we came here with Oga (Governor Shettima) in 2014, in the build up to the 2015 elections when Asiwaju invited Oga here for a meeting. We (aides to the Governor) were sitted here at the parlor and to our surprise, she (Oluremi Tinubu) came and personally served each of us with refreshments. We were shocked given the fact that her husband was actually the bigger boss as
leader of the APC which is the party of our boss who was going for second term election. That day we came, her messengers were playing with her and she was so free with them. The woman is just down to earth,” he said to me.

As I ran through the qualities in Mrs Oluremi Tinubu, I concluded that Asiwaju’s great sense of judgment transcends politics because it takes so much wisdom for a man not only to marry a good woman but for the same man to be rich and powerful, yet have his wife retain her humility and Africanness even in the midst of wealth, power and influence that is known to have ruined many.

Isa Gusau is Special Adviser on Communications and Strategy to Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State and he wrote from Abuja.

‪#‎Nation‬ News"

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