Astute businessman, Chief Dotun Sanusi, recently hosted two rallies in Ibadan, Oyo State Capital for the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. Kemi Olaitan reports
Between September 28, 2022, when campaigns officially commenced based on the time table released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and now, apart from the campaigns by the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) of the presidential candidates of the various political parties, groups and individuals have also been in the fore front to sell these candidates to the electorates.
From the ridiculous to the sublime, these groups and individuals are daily on the roads in major cities across the country adducing myriads of reasons while their candidate should be voted for by Nigerians during the February 25, 2023 presidential elections.
Critics are however sceptical of the motive of these groups as they are often seen as positioning their members for what they would benefit from the candidate they are supporting. This view is based principally on the experience of the past most especially since the advent of the present democratic dispensation.
With the presidential election less than 100 days away, Ibadan the political headquarters of the South West region, has had its fair share of the campaigns as a son of the soil, billionaire businessman and foremost philanthropist, Chief Dotun Sanusi, within a spate of two weeks, hosted two events to rally support for the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
The first of the epochal events, tagged, ‘‘Ilaji Farms Mobilize For Tinubu/Shettima Endorsement In Oyo State’’, organised by a social political group under the aegis of Rontex for BAT Political Signature, which he convened and held at his Ilaji Hotels and Sports Resort in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital, was attended by family heads (Mogajis); Baales, chiefs and other notable groups in Ibadanland.
Sanusi while addressing the mammoth crowd, said he could vouch for Tinubu as he is the most competent among the candidates eyeing the presidential seat, maintaining that he believed in his aspiration and would do everything humanly possible to ensure he emerges as the next president.
His words: “I have never taken contracts from any government. I have not taken anything from anybody, but I do accept destiny and the will of God. But, it should be said everywhere that the person I have confidence in, who will end our sufferings in Ibadan and Oyo State is Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“We are talking of presidential poll, not governorship, not National Assembly and not House of Assembly elections. We stand on the mandate of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”
The Ibadan Mogaji then admonished all groups to mobilise support at the grassroots for the APC presidential candidate who he said would bring prosperity to all and sundry.
Sanusi stressed that as a born Muslim but today a Christian, the fears been expressed in some quarters over the Muslim -Muslim ticket of the APC only exist in the realm of imagination.
He noted that Tinubu protected the interests of Christians as Governor of Lagos State and would do the same if elected president and more importantly his wife and children are Christians.
The President-General, Central Council of Ibadan Indigenes (CCII), Prince Yemisi Adeaga, who spoke on behalf of the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Olalekan Balogun, said the ancient city would always have a position when it comes to political dispensation.
According to him, the message from the first class monarch, was to tell the people that “they are keenly watching the character, nature, disposition and relevance of the candidates. For now, we are still watching and we know that by the grace of God, as it was being done before, Olubadan will give a directive through the Council for Ibadan people. But nevertheless, we must state categorically that nobody goes against his or her people if that can be decoded.”
The Convener, South-west Agenda for Asiwaju 2023 (SWAGA), Hon. Oyetunji Ojo, who could not hide his delight on what he saw and heard, said the body language of the Baales, Mogajis, Obas and groups showed they were in support of presidential ambition of the former Lagos state governor.
The former federal lawmaker then disclosed that over 10,000 Baales and Mogajis signed a compendium to endorse Tinubu, saying “the body language is all over and you can see their representatives. Once the Baales have agreed to that, once the Kabiyesis have agreed to that and once the Mogajis have agreed to that in Ibadanland, you know it is a done deal.”
The National Secretary of SWAGA, Hon. Bosun Oladele, while speaking in the same vein, described the endorsement of the former governor of Lagos state as a mark of acceptability and a new beginning of good things to come from 2023, reiterating that the message to the South-west region was unassailable which is 15 million votes for Tinubu.
Oladele said, “And we can only achieve that if we mobilise all our registered voters. We are here because of a wonderful and unprecedented event. We are here because we needed to listen to the call of our people. As you know Chief Sanusi is a prominent Ibadan leader, a community and opinion leader. He has been able to galvanise the chiefs and Baales in Ibadanland, he has been able to bring everybody together under one umbrella. And the reason for that is Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the presidential candidate for APC and the next president of the federal republic of Nigeria by the grace of God.
“We have done the street work. Now, we are going into unit-by-unit. We are going to have unit Marshals, Unit Captains, and Polling Booth Marshalls. All these are people that will work with us. So the campaign has gone to the level of one-on-one.”
Not done yet with rallying support for the APC presidential candidate, Sanusi was to convene another campaign rally at the same venue penultimate Saturday exactly two weeks after the first event. This time around it involved members of Agbekoya Solidarity Movement of Nigeria,
Landlords and Landladies Volunteer Group of Nigeria (LLVGN), and Odu’a Peoples Congress (OPC).
Sanusi in his address to the not less than 10,000 people at the rally reiterated that it is Tinubu that can foster sustainable growth and development of the country, vowing that he has and would continue to mobilise for Tinubu to become president of Nigeria as he is the most competent among all the presidential candidates.
He said, “Now that we are operating under borrowed economy, we need somebody that has intellectual capacity. We need somebody that can see opportunities where others don’t see. So we need somebody that can spot opportunity where there is no opportunity and advance our cause to save the future of our children. We want good governance and you have to carry all the people along from the beginning. The one that has intellectual capacity to advance the cause of Nigeria and take it into the next level, to be giant in terms of economy in the whole of Africa, is Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”
Sanusi stated further that the time has come for Nigerians to forget religious sentiments as good governance is not about being a Christian or Muslim, adding that Tinubu has no fewer than 20 of his cabinet members still relevant in politics today and needed no introduction on his intellectual capability.
“It shows that he knows how to impact, he knows how to drive and he knows how to form a structure that works,” he said.
Also speaking, Governor-General, Agbekoya Solidarity Movement of Nigeria, Mr. Olayiwola Bankole, said members of the movement were at the event to pledge their support for Tinubu to be president of Nigeria come 2023, saying “We want all Yorubas, Hausas, Igbos, Fulanis, Tivs or Tapa who are Nigerians to support Tinubu to become president of Nigeria. We pray that God grant our prayers and make him the next President of Nigeria.”
The Governor of Odua Peoples Congress (Fasheun faction) in the state, Comrade Ademola Onaolapo, on his part, said all the tribes in the country know that the former Lagos state governor, is a detribalised Nigerian with great vision.
He said, “We urge all to believe in Tinubu and give him all the necessary support to become Nigeria’s president come 2023. We are sure that his presidency will bring economic growth and development and pray that Yorubaland, Hausaland, Igboland and Nigeria as a whole will continue to blossom.”
Political pundits in the pace setter state despite lauding Sanusi for being consistent on what he believes in are however expressing fear about the mileage these campaigns he has had and others still to come would have on the candidate he is rallying support for. For them as a non-politician he is a novice in the intricacies involved in politics most especially in our clime.
Nevertheless, it is a matter of time to know where the pendulum of the presidential election in Oyo state would swing come February 2023 and whether it would be a road worth taken by the Ibadan-born businessman and philanthropist.
