Tinubu said Obasanjo is the only candidate who stands a chance of blocking Buhari, whose ethnocentrism would jeopardize Nigeria
By Ishaya Ibrahim, News Editor
A Nigerian Professor of Journalism at the Kennesaw State University in the USA, Farooq Kperogi, has stated that a national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, is on record to have called President Muhamnadu Buhari an ethnic bigot.
He said Tinubu’s unflattering remarks about Buhari were made during several meetings between Tinubu and U.S. Consul General in Nigeria spanning between 2003 and 2007.
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Kperogi, in his Saturday Column, said Buhari’s camp is aware of Tinubu’s low opinion of Buhari long before their partnership that won Buhati the presidency in 2015.
He said Buhari’s camp views the denial by Tinubu’s spokesman, Tunde Rahman, as theatrics when he dubbed the leaked communication between Tinubu and US officials in Nigeria to be fake.
The leaked WikiLeaks communication of 2003 reads: “Turning to the presidential contest, Tinubu disclosed that he does not like President Obasanjo because he contributed to the end of democracy in Nigeria during his tenure as a military president and is now benefiting from that history.
“That said, Tinubu admitted that he and his party, the Alliance for Democracy, must support Obasanjo. Southwest Nigeria is Yoruba land and the President is Yoruba. Tinubu”s [sic] party had no choice since it has not fielded a presidential candidate. Moreover, Obasanjo is the only candidate who stands a chance of blocking his rival, General Muhammadu Buhari, whose ethnocentrism would jeopardize Nigeria”s [sic] national unity. Buhari and his ilk are agents of destabilization who would be far worse than Obasanjo.
“Tinubu and many other governors are therefore implementing a strategy to re-elect Obasanjo, partly in an effort to prevent Sharia from spreading. Tinubu predicted that the President will follow his own course, if re-elected, since he will not need as many friends the second time around.”
Kperogi also quoted the communication where Tinubu had kind words to say about Atiku Abubakar throughout his interactions with the Consul General.
The leaked communication reads: “Tinubu praised Vice President Atiku Abubakar, whom he has known for years
“Elaborating on his knowledge of the VP, Tinubu said he has known and understood the VP even before his entry into politics. Atiku is a detribalized politician who knows where he is going and how to build bridges to get there.”
The Consul General also wrote that, “Tinubu credits his going into politics to Atiku’s personal encouragement.”
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