PRESIDENTIAL aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Senator Bola Tinubu, yesterday, vowed to get dirty, if there are plans to halt his presidential ambition in 2023.
He said this during his consultation with the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, and the Olubadan-elect, Chief Lekan Balogun.
Tinubu had, in January, visited President Muhammadu Buhari to register his readiness to contest in the 2023 elections.
Speaking at the Olubadan-elect’s palace in Ibadan, the National Leader of the APC insisted that no amount of intimidation could stop him from fulfilling his ambition.
He said his visit to Oyo and Ibadan was borne out of his respect for the royal stool, and to seek their blessings, cooperation and prayers to lead the country in 2023.
He said: “No amount of intimidation can stop me. I am ready to get dirty. I am out to become President of Nigeria. We are at the crossroads.”
Speaking earlier at the Alaafin’s palace, he said: “I cannot embark on a project of such magnitude without seeking for prayers and cooperation of the traditional rulers.
“I am here to inform our fathers of my decision to run for the position of the President of this country in 2023. What I need from our highly reverred traditional rulers are their prayers and cooperation.
“Today, by the special grace of God, in Yorubaland unlike before, we have the Vice-President, the Minister of Works, Interior and Sports but we still need more.”
Responding, Oba Adeyemi, who invoked the spirits of his fore-bearers, said his request had been granted.
He said all the ancestors of Yorubaland would work in his favour and answer his prayers.
He, therefore, asked the 10 Oke-Ogun traditional rulers in attendance at the meeting whether they were in support of his decision, and their response was: “We are fully in support.”
At the Olubadan-elect’s residence, the monarch said: “We have known you and we know your antecedent. We know your antecedents as a progressive. You laid the foundation of today’s Lagos. You are the leading light of Nigeria. You contributed to making Nigeria what it is today.
“Without Yoruba, Nigeria will not be what it is today. Nigeria is badly divided. We are looking forward to a Yoruba president who will unite this country. We need a leader that will have a national focus and national acceptability. The road may be rough but by His grace, you will triumph.”
