How I instigated Tinubu to run for president – Bisi Akande

The former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Bisi Akande, has revealed how in the build-up to the 2023 elections he encouraged current President Bola Tinubu to vie for the presidency.

Speaking during an exclusive interview with ace broadcast journalist Edmund Obilo, Chief Akande said that despite the widely held view that becoming president was Tinubu’s lifelong dream, the former Lagos governor suddenly developed cold feet and was unwilling to take a shot at the highest office in the land.

According to the ex-governor of Osun State, he had to prevail on Tinubu to run as he was the strongest candidate the Yoruba could push forward to clinch the presidency at the time.

On why he rallied Yoruba political leaders ahead of the APC presidential primaries, especially when the presidential aspiration of ex-vice president Yemi Osinbajo became an issue, Chief Akande had this to say: “I wanted anybody that wishes to be free to run, but I don’t want bitterness amongst the Yoruba contestants. I wanted them to talk on issues, and not one destroying the other because I wanted one of them to emerge; I wanted a Yoruba president”.

Chief Akande maintained that former vice president Osinbajo had every right to contest for the APC presidential ticket and he has no grievances against all the Yoruba aspirants who ran against Tinubu.

However, he clarified that ex-president Muhammadu Buhari informed him that he ((Buhari) did not push VP Osinbajo to contest against his mentor, Tinubu. According to Chief Akande, the former president held the view that the moment Tinubu indicated interest in running for president, Osinbajo should have stepped back from contesting.

Watch the full interview in the video below…