Ahead of 2023 presidential election, serving Speakers and their predecessors from Nigeria’s Northwest zone have thrown their weight behind All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader, Bola Tinubu, to emerge as successor to President Muhammadu Buhari after his tenure.
They argued that with the challenges currently facing the country, Nigeria deserves a detribalized leader who has shown over time that he has the capacity to lead the country.
Praising Tinubu, who is a former Lagos State governor, for being able to unite the southwest under one umbrella, the lawmakers noted that his leadership qualities are most scarce and such remains an advantage for the entire country.
Taking turns to speak at a meeting held in Kano for the states in the northwestern zone yesterday, the senior lawmakers declared that Tinubu remains the right person for the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at this time.
Their declarations and promises are coming some weeks after their colleagues in the southwestern region of Nigeria also endorsed Tinubu for the 2023 presidential race.
At the Kano meeting where the speakers and former speakers received the visiting Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, who led a team from the southwest, participants further promised to commence grassroots mobilisation ahead of electioneering.
Speaking during the meeting, a former speaker from Kano, Yau Yanshana, described Tinubu as a worthy leader, who he believes would take Nigeria to better heights, adding that the APC leader would have no problems securing votes from Kano and other states in the zone.
“We should now be thinking beyond him being the flagbearer of the APC and concentrate on securing victory for him in the actual election.
“We know that 90 percent of the structure of the party is built by Tinubu,” he said assuring that 95 percent of the votes from Kano would be in favour of the APC leader.
On his part, Abu Dauda, a former deputy speaker in Jigawa, lauded the contributions of Tinubu to the success of the APC and the growth and progress of Nigeria.
According to him, Tinubu becoming president would mean consolidating on his passion to make Nigeria great. “If not him, then who? If not now, then when?” Dauda asked.
Addressing journalists concerning the meeting in Kano, the host Speaker, Hamisu Cidari, said that with 2023 approaching, there was a need to source for a flagbearer “who can stand on his feet and effectively direct people.”
He said that Tinubu already has their support and promised that he would win in Kano during the 2023 presidential election.
Obasa said that he, alongside his team made of serving lawmakers were in the zones to interact with their colleagues on how to move the nation forward.
“2023 is by the corner and the first thing is to look within us for the person that is capable, that has all it takes – the knowledge and capability – to deliver. To achieve that, there is need for us to come together and talk and extend the discussion beyond our boundary to every part of the country to make it easier for us in Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the man that we believe can deliver,” Speaker Obasa said.
An elated Obasa commended his colleagues in the zone for honouring the meeting in their numbers.
“What we met is even beyond our expectations. This is an encouragement and success because our brothers here have assured us that they are on it and that we should concentrate on others beyond them because they are already in support of what we have come to preach to them,” he said.
On his part, the national coordinator of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu (BAT) Movement, Aliyu Saulawa, said that the organisation was formed to garner the support of Nigerians for Tinubu ahead of 2023.
He argued that in 2015 and 2019, the north got a lot of support from Tinubu and others from the southwest adding that it was time for the beneficiaries to reciprocate the support.
He noted that Speakers, deputy speakers, and lawmakers have major roles to play in this regard being representatives of communities and constituencies across Nigeria.
“We have held an initial meeting in Ibadan in the southwest where past and current speakers agreed to support the movement. We are now here,” he said.
Some top lawmakers who attended the meeting included Hon. Abdu A. Dauda from Jigawa, Hon. Moh’d W. G. from Sokoto, Hon. Aliyu Auwal from Kaduna, Rt. Hon. Aliyu Sabiu Muduru from Katsina.
Among the others are: Hon. Ahmad Garba from Jigawa, Isa Idris from Jigawa, Rt. Hon. Shehu Dalhatu from Katsina, Rt. Hon. Yusuf Ata from Kano, Rt. Hon. Aliko Shuaibu from Kano, Rt. Hon. Abdul’Azeez GG from Kano, Rt. Hon. Bal’arabe Gani from Kano, Hon. Abdullahi MB, and Rt. Hon. Kabiru Alhassan.
