By PUNCH
The All Progressives Congress campaign train was in Ondo State on Saturday with a message by the its presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, that he remained confident of winning the forthcoming presidential election.
Tinubu said he was a better manager than the duo of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Mr Peter Obi, presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party and the Labour Party respectively.
The APC candidate, who spoke in Akure, the state capital, urged the people to vote for him at the poll,
Tinubu, was at the campaign in company of many bigwigs of the party, including the Governors of Ondo, Lagos, Ogun and Kano States; Rotimi Akeredolu, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Dapo Abiodun and Abdullahi Ganduje respectively.
Tinubu said education would be his priority and added that there would no longer be strike in the universities, adding that he would develop the Ondo Deep Seaport if elected to office as president.
He said, “Ondo is known as progressive state, followed by other states like Ogun, Oyo, and I appreciate our progressive governors. This incoming election is our own; it is the vote of inheritance. It is vote of three in one. Don’t lose your PVC; your PVC is your right.
“Our rally today is a signal of our renewed hope for Nigeria, that February 25, you will go and make a wise decision, you will vote massively for me, I’m too sure and very sure that you will vote for APC and that’s why I’m very happy.
“I will win this election. Atiku cannot do it; he doesn’t want to build a better nation instead he will rather sell your birthright to the highest bidders. Atiku’s policies and action are nothing.
“Obi has a chance to show up a progressive when he was a governor of Anambra State. All he could do was to boast that he saved money when he was the governor of Anambra State.
“Obi has nothing to be proud of. He made people of Anambra cry and he claimed to be party labour leader. My people, you cannot entrust the future of our nation to Atiku and Obi,” he said.
However, the Director, Strategic Communications of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council, Chief Dele Momodu, has said the lack of quality in the campaigns by the APC Campaign Organisation is the reason most chieftains of the ruling party, including the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) are not campaigning for Tinubu.
Momodu made the claim in a brief statement issued over the weekend.
The statement read, “It is obvious that the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), and many senior APC chieftains are palpably embarrassed about the quality of their presidential campaigns which has been extremely lacklustre.
“Their candidate has failed miserably to even sell his own manifesto. It has been one gaffe after the other. To the President, Major General Buhari’s credit, he was able to put up a robust defence when he was accused of some shortcomings in the past.
“In Tinubu’s case, his team has resorted only to bullying opposition and the media without offering responsible explanations to very serious accusations and allegations.
“The social media is awash with incredibly embarrassing jokes and comedy skits about a once ebullient and well respected South-West political icon.
“It is therefore not surprising that the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) has been foot-dragging in campaigning alongside a candidate who has brought them more grief than glory.
Meanwhile, the leadership of the South West Agenda for Asiwaju, has advised Tinubu’s supporters Tunubu to avoid fighting at polling units in order to prevent void votes.
The national leader of SWAGA, Opayemi Owodunni, said this at a meeting held in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State as part of mobilisation exercise for Tinubu in the forthcoming election.
Owodunni said, “The new rule from INEC is that once there is violence at any polling unit, even if you just raised your hand up or cause trouble, they will cancel all the votes that have been cast.
“So, please, comport yourself whenever it’s time to vote. Some people will be looking for ways to create conflict in order to spoil our votes. They know Asiwaju will win; so, please, vote with wisdom.”
In a related development, the Director of Contact Mobilisation for Tinubu/Shettima, North-East Zone, Gombe State chapter, Inuwa Kari, says APC governors will support Tinubu without any ethnic consideration.
Kari said this shortly after a brief meeting with members of the directorate in Gombe, where the team brainstormed on effective mobilisation ahead of 2023 elections.
Kari, who doubles as Chief of Staff to Gombe State Governor, said the North had honourable people and would not renege on its promise, adding that governors on the APC platform had earlier agreed to support the South in the spirit of fairness.
He argued that the presidential candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar, had nothing more to market himself with other than tribe.
