Lagos candidates jostling for the presidency 

By Otomewo Oritsejolomi Joshua

It is no longer news that the 2023 elections are around the corner and the jostling and positioning for the highest office that comes with this period has started earnestly. Many contestants have already thrown their hats in the ring, while others still wait on the sidelines.

Since independence in 1960, six major Yoruba sons have attempted a shot at the presidency. They are Obafemi Awolowo, Lateef Jakande, MKO Abiola, Bola Ige, Olu Falae, and Olusegun Obasanjo. From the aforementioned, only Obasanjo from Ogun State was successful.

Now we have come to a unique point in the history of Nigeria and it is the turn of the South to produce the president, and as things stand now, Lagos with three viable candidates, is the frontrunner in this race.

BOLA AHMED TINUBU

Since 2015 there have been rumours of a possible presidential run for the so-called Lion of Bourdillon. On January 11, he finally confirmed the rumours to journalists at the presidential villa after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari, where he had officially informed him of his intention to run.

The former Lagos State Governor has long been a political power broker in Nigeria. The driving force of the defunct Action Congress Of Nigeria (ACN) opposition to the PDP in the first 16 years after military rule. He led the ACN to form APC with President Buhari’s Congress For Progressive Change in 2013. This ended the Peoples’ Democratic Party’s 16-year hold on power.

With a strong support base in the Southwest and North, Tinubu is the most popular candidate to win the election. However, his journey to Aso Villa faces some challenges; his disputed age and uncertain health status makes him a liability as no one wants a president who will be unable to fulfill his duties due to ill health or die in office like President Yar’adua.

Also his stance during the EndSARS protest and some of his bizarre economic ideas like conscripting the millions of unemployed youths into the army do not make him a favourite of the younger generation.

PROF. YEMI OSINBAJO

The highly esteemed Senior Advocate of Nigeria and former lecturer at the University of Lagos’s rise to the second highest office in the land can best be described as miraculous. With no prior experience in politics and only an eight year stint as the Lagos State Commissioner for Justice, he became the Vice President.

Now that his principal’s tenure draws to an end, he has been touted as the best to succeed President Buhari. But a few obstacles stand in his path, most notably Tinubu’s presidential run.

Osinbajo is a dedicated party man and will never go against his political godfather and party leader. If Tinubu pursues his presidential ambition to the end, Osinbajo will have to step down.

His association with the Buhari presidency is a huge stain on what would have otherwise been an immaculate record. His deafening silence during the EndSARS protest and his infamous “My hands are tied remark” will affect him.

BABATUNDE RAJI FASHOLA

The former Governor of Lagos State and current Minister of Power is another candidate with fairly decent chances of a presidential run.

Although the current Minister for Works and Housing has stated that he is not interested in the race. However several groups have called on him to run, with several pairing Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State with him as a possible running mate. His popularity as a governor might work in his favour.

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