Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola has urged Nigerians to wait till January 2022 for the National Leader of All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu to comment on the 2023 presidential election.
Gatekeepers News reports that Fashola has urged Nigerians to wait till January 2022 for Tinubu to declare whether he will be running for president in 2023 or not.
The Minister gave this plea while speaking on Channels Television’s ‘Hard Copy’ programme which was aired on Friday night.
Lately, posters and billboards advertising the rumoured presidential bid of Tinubu who was the Governor of Lagos State between May 1999 to May 2007 have been seen in major cities including Lagos and Abuja.
Although Tinubu has yet to declare his intention to contest any office in 2023, there have been reports and glaring indications that he might be interested in being the number citizen of the country.
There have been earlier reports of a political movement mobilising support for Tinubu to contest the 2023 presidential election SouthWest Agenda 2023. This was inaugurated in Lagos in October by Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and other party chieftains.
Even as political debates get intense for a Southern President after the eight-year regime of the incumbent, Muhammadu Buhari who is from Katsina State, North-West Nigeria, some groups and persons have also said aside from Tinubu, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo; Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi; and Fashola are equally capable to be Nigeria’s President.
When asked if he is interested in becoming the President of Nigeria, Fashola said, “It is a very tough responsibility, a very tough job; I don’t envy those who have held that office and I don’t envy those who aspire to take it as well.”
The Minister while asked if he is speaking for any aspirant come 2023 said, “As far as I am aware, nobody has said, ‘I want to be Nigeria’s President’. There are people speaking for people. Nobody has come out, we are not at that stage yet.
“I can’t venture out and say that I will speak for X or Y. Let the person come out and say, ‘I want to serve Nigeria’.
“It pains me sometimes when we see that very important job and responsibility to, ‘My people said’. I think the whole sense of it should be that, ‘I am able, I have looked at myself, give me your problem, you go to sleep’.”
On whether he will support Tinubu’s rumoured 2023 presidential bid, Fashola said, “I saw him (Tinubu) last week, he didn’t tell me he is running for office and to the best of my knowledge, the last statement he made on it is that people will know in January.”
The two-term ex-governor of Lagos also said he has not asked Tinubu whether he is interested in the 2023 Presidency or not. “No, I didn’t ask him, I just went to ask how was doing. He has issued a statement that ‘I will speak in January, so let us wait till January,” Fashola said.
