Tinubu says Fashola ‘still the best man for the job’

By Segun Balogun


February 3, 2010 02:00AM
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Former governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, yesterday publicly demonstrated his support for the incumbent governor of the state, Babatunde Fashola.

At a press conference in his Lagos home, Mr. Tinubu denied rumours of a bitter feud between him and Mr. Fashola. “I am saying it categorically that all is well, and that Fashola is still the best man for the job” declared Mr. Tinubu who added that “at the initial stage, people expressed doubt about him. They said he won’t perform and I created the slogan that he is the best man for the job and I am still standing on that till tomorrow.” Mr. Tinubu drew parallel to the early history of his administration when he was the subject of a ferocious opposition attack, and said, “There were several paid advertorials and allegations against me when I was the governor of Lagos. I didn’t attribute it to internal problem. You will expect these in politics. What we need to do is to be mature.”

He said, “If they don’t abuse you in politics, you are not successful” and that the allegations of feud merely illustrates that the governor is on the right course.

However, Mr. Tinubu said he would not deny that there had been moments of friction between him and Mr. Fashola but said it would be wrong to characterize this as a fight.

“If I see certain things that might be wrong, I will not watch him fall and have broken legs with bruises before I try to pick him up. Experience you don’t buy but acquire and I am a well experienced politician and a matured one at that” he said, describing himself as a guardian angel for Mr. Fashola, and scolding the media coverage of the feud as a strategy to shift the nation’s focus from the more important presidential and constitutional crisis Nigeria is currently going through.

Bisi Akande, the national chairman of Action Congress, who brokered a reconciliation meeting that led to the press conference sat between Mr. Tinubu, and Mr. Fashola. In attendance were also a number of lawmakers as Mr. Akande tried to dampen the tense mood in the state, opening his address with a gleeful claim that “Tunde Fashola is an anointed disciple of Bola Tinubu and that was why, as a replacement for Bola Tinubu, we chose Fashola as our governor of Lagos state.”

He said the press conference was to correct the erroneous reporting of a feud in the press when indeed there was no such feud. “The more we deny the rumour that there was a feud between the two of them, the more people want to hear something” Mr. Akande said, insisting that, “The cordiality between Tinubu and Fashola remains as solid as it was in 2007.”

We disagree but we are not enemies

Mr. Akande reached out to a domestic reference to illustrate the feud between the two gentlemen saying “It is possible for Tinubu and Fashola to disagree over certain issues, [but] that doesn’t make them enemy,” and gave a thumbs up to Mr. Tinubu’s choice of the incumbent governor as a successor describing, him as the “best chooser of a leader in Nigeria today.”

Second term is uncertain

The Party’s national chairman said the party’s candidate for the 2011 general elections was still open adding that, “I have a guideline for 2011 for all candidates all over the country and Lagos will not be an exception. When we get there, we shall let you know our decision.

In PDP, they can say no vacancy, all governors are returned unopposed. We don’t do that in our party” Mr. Akande said.

Nothing to add

Mr. Fashola towed the same path as Mr. Akande and Mr. Tinubu saying, “there is no rift between me and the speaker or between the executive arm of the government and the legislative. None of us can work without one another.

You have heard the members of the House say that they have nothing against me and they are not planning to impeach me.”

He urged that the people should accept their words and trust them, if indeed “we are your elected representatives.”

Even though Mr. Tinubu has earlier described the publication alleging corruption as something that “may be from the opposition party,” Mr. Akande said the planned investigation by the House of Assembly based on a newspaper publication is not wrong.

“It is only in PDP [that] you talk of mismanagement of fund. In the AC, we will still investigate it. There is nothing wrong with the investigation because we have to clear our name. It will still carry on,” he said.


http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Home/5521377-146/tinubu_says_fashola__still_the.csp

“I am saying it categorically that all is well, and that Fashola is still the best man for the job” declared Mr. Tinubu

This is so refreshing to hear, I hope that by now people like "Forpeace (?)" would carry their hatred for Fashola elsewhere

desgiezd:

This is so refreshing to hear, I hope that by now people like "Forpeace (?)" would carry their hatred for Fashola elsewhere

my brother,im for progress and transparency. . .i absolutely dont hate anyone

He ain't saying something we don't already know.


Once again, Lagosians just lead, they just showed the Nation how to agree and disagree, effective leadership and conflict resolution, political maturity and sophistication.

We don't have to kill and burn down houses to realize that at the end of the day, we're all striving towards the same goals and a prosperous Lagos state.


Lesson learned.

reminds me of how OBJ was eating pounded yam with AUDU OGBE and misleading the gullible that the storm was over, when actually the plot to remove him had been sealed. Or is it that popular embrace OBJ gave okadigbo a few days before he was booted out?

Abeg there is nothing refreshing about this. I just hope there was no fracas in the first place and that all we heard were just plots by PDP to crack the AC wall. If not , then this temporary respite only affords both parties some leave to garner armaments for the final onslaught.

@babake2000

Are u stupi.d? Why are pasting this scam all over NL?