Contrary to a generally-held belief that national leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, selected Professor Yemi Osinbajo as running mate to President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2015 presidential election, the newly-released authorised biography of President Muhammadu Buhari has revealed otherwise.
The book, ‘Muhammadu Buhari: The Challenges of Leadership in Nigeria,’ written by Prof. John Paden, was presented at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, on Monday.
It said Tinubu was actually opposed to Osinbajo’s candidature as he preferred to contest the 2015 election with Buhari.
Tinubu, while speaking at the event, spoke on how Osinbajo emerged.
But the book disclosed how the names of Tinubu; then Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN); and Osinbajo, were forwarded to Buhari for him to pick a running mate shortly after the latter emerged the party’s candidate at its convention in Lagos.
The author, however, did not disclose the person or persons who forwarded the list of the three nominees to Buhari.
Paden noted that, “With Buhari coming from the North-West geopolitical zone, the Vice-Presidency had been ceded to the South-West geopolitical zone.
“Tinubu, a former governor of Lagos State and political ‘godfather’ of the South-West geopolitical zone, felt he should be the vice-presidential candidate.
“His protégée and the then popular Governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Fashola, was also a possible candidate.
“Both Tinubu and Fashola were Muslims, which complicated the national balance.
“A third candidate, Yemi Osinbajo, had been Attorney General of Lagos State and a senior law professor and a pastor.
“When the three names were forwarded to Buhari, he chose Osinbajo despite enormous pressure from Tinubu.”
Tinubu was one of the four persons who reviewed the book.
Former president Olusegun Obasanjo, who was the special guest of honour, described the 320-page book as a mixture of history and current affairs, except for a few “incorrect insinuations,” which he said could be understood.
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