Emilokan, vigorous campaign and the coming victory, By Tunde Rahman

Asiwaju’s message of Renewed Hope, as disseminated during the campaign and well structured in the Action Plan, includes a vision for the country in various areas, including insecurity, which is planned to be faced with the injection of advanced technology and make more. boots on the ground with the recruitment of other personnel, in addition to the necessary training programs.

When the results of Saturday’s presidential election are announced and Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is declared the winner, as expected, his victory will not be in doubt because it will be a well-deserved victory.

In this election, Asiwa Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, offered the best, comprehensive and realistic solutions to the various problems plaguing the country. The solution put forward in the policy document gave new life to the people. Among his rivals, he is, inarguably, running the most holistic, all-inclusive and grueling campaign schedule.

Sometimes during the campaign, in the ancient city of Abeokuta, the capital of Ogun State, which is now familiar and famous for Asiwawa’s wise and piercing remarks, he said, perhaps befitting the city’s history as the cradle of a free press. In the Ogun State capital, Asiwa added ‘Emilokan’ to the growing vocabulary of Nigerian politics, while addressing party delegates. This is a statement of his willingness and readiness to become the president of Nigeria.

Contrary to the negative spin by traducers, these wise statements were never made out of a sense of rude entitlement. It was a bold and brave statement, declaring that he was fit for the high office. It is intended to convey the fact that he has worked to advance democracy in the country, has contributed immensely to the growth and development of Nigeria, and has also helped others to achieve political goals, which is also worthy of the highest office according to his qualifications, competence and capacity.

Anyone who claims self-righteousness will sit at home, fold their hands and expect the presidency to be delivered to them on a silver platter. No Asiwaju. He traveled the length and breadth of the country, speaking directly to people and selling his candidacy and message of Renewal of Hope.

On Tuesday when the curtain was drawn on the opening campaign of the party, after a very successful and unprecedented rally at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere in Lagos, the APC candidate has toured the entire country, visiting many countries several times.

For the record, Asiwa Tinubu and his campaign train held rallies in 35 states and FCT Abuja, except in Taraba State where some issues in the state have not been resolved as of the scheduled date of the meeting. He was even ready to continue to the country when word came that the rally had been cancelled.

In some cases, two rallies are organized in one day, such as Anambra and Cross Rivers, and Kebbi and FCT Abuja. In addition, APC candidates organize other campaign activities, including townhall meetings with critical stakeholders. He met business leaders and entrepreneurs in the organized private sector, youth groups, health professionals, trade unions, religious leaders, traders, farmers, livestock development and commodity traders. Asiwaju also interacted with strategic stakeholders in mining, agro-processing and creative arts. There were townhall meetings on key sectors of the economy in at least 20 states, including Niger, Kano, Nasarawa, Katsina, Lagos, Oyo, Ogun, Edo, Jigawa, Yobe, Bauchi, Kaduna, Kogi, Imo, Ebonyi, Cross Rivers and Delta , before APC candidates return to the states to hold political rallies.

A precursor to the campaign stops and town hall meetings is an initial trip around the country ahead of the June 8 primary to meet with party members and key party actors to solicit support.

I have taken the time to present Asiwaju’s complete journey around the country before this important election to emphasize how hard he has worked and how rigorous his campaign activities have been.

Now, the first striking point about this is that Asiwaju has been involved in continuous, consistent and continuous travel across the country, in some cases to difficult and uncharted terrain, soliciting support for his candidacy. This demanding schedule belies the idle insinuation that he is sick, unwell, and unfit to rule. I do not believe that a person who is not healthy can travel, say, back and forth, on the bandit-infested Sokoto-Gusau road, a distance of about three and a half hours, meet people, just to retire. the same evening for several rounds of meetings lasting until wee hours the next day.

Or take a six-hour trip to a remote town and largely avoid the ancient town of Birnin-Gwari in Kaduna State, thereby becoming the only presidential aspirant or candidate to ever visit the area.
These trips, sometimes carried out at night, and meetings and engagements at night also reveal another aspect of him: Asiwaju has a very high work ethic, working until the morning, only to be woken up by another phone call. one meeting or another.

Asiwaju’s message of Renewed Hope, as disseminated during the campaign and well structured in the Action Plan, includes a vision for the country in various areas, including insecurity, which is planned to be faced with the injection of advanced technology and make more. boots on the ground with the recruitment of other personnel, in addition to the necessary training programs.

On the economic front, Asiwaju sought to accelerate double-digit growth by mobilizing massive resources and increasing available megawatts of electricity to pave the way for rapid industrialization.

Asiwaju’s turnaround plan includes continuous and increasing investment in physical infrastructure, such as road and rail networks. Asiwaju’s plan pays particular attention to agriculture and especially rice farming and production. The region, which is part of President Buhari’s achievements, will be revitalized and consolidated by the Tinubu-Shettima presidency.

There is much more that could be said in the program, cutting education, especially university education, industrial relations, fighting corruption, etc., but for space limitations.

In the campaign, apart from the members of the APC National Working Committee led by the national chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, and the governor of the party, Asiwa is usually President Buhari. The President is physically present at campaign rallies in eight states namely, Plateau, Adamawa, Bauchi, Sokoto, Katsina, Nasarawa, Imo and, of course, the final rally on Tuesday, February 21 in Lagos.

What it clearly shows is that President Buhari and Asiwa Tinubu are on the same page on the issue of the 2023 presidency.

Indeed, the president is working to ensure the victory of Asiwa in the election. At every time of the campaign, in the video he put out last weekend while in far Addis Ababa, and in the grand finale of the campaign in Lagos, he again sold Asiwaju to Nigerians, raising his hand up as the next president, God willing. President Buhari made it clear that even though he is not a candidate in this election, APC has a qualified and competent flag bearer in Asiwa, who will continue and consolidate his achievements.

A number of other issues also emerged from the completed campaign. The party and the governor stood firmly behind their candidate. The national chairman of the party, Senator Adamu, and most of the governors and members of the National Working Committee and other party leaders have always attended every campaign stop. The import of this began to throw weight behind the shift of power to the South and backing Asiwaju Tinubu in the primary of the party, the governor remained steadfast with the people. They never looked back.

Speaking at a campaign rally in Abeokuta and speaking on the Central Bank of Nigeria’s naira exchange policy, Asiwaju Tinubu said that while the policy is viable, its implementation has been a problem and a huge burden on the people in the informal sector, especially. poor people who have been made to bear the burden. He urged that the policy should be given a human face. Only brave and courageous leaders can come out as they did. While other candidates are silent or ambivalent, one, a former vice president contesting on the PDP platform, even said “do not exceed the deadline for currency exchange, the fact that the people are suffering is not enough to change the policy of the country.” Asiwaju is firmly on the side of the people. Asiwaju pointed out that when elected will take a very bold decision, but for the benefit of the people.

Tunde Rahman is the media adviser to Asiwaju Tinubu.