Former Aviation Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode, has observed that the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Ahmed Bola Tinubu, may be losing his political influence on the party.
The former Minister said this while reacting to the decision of APC’s National Chairman, Chief John Oyegun to submit the name of former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Rotimi Akeredolu to the Independent Electoral Commission, INEC, as the party’s flag bearer in the upcoming Ondo governorship election despite calls for cancellation.
The Ondo primary election was said to have been marred by irregularities which led to Tinubu’s rumoured candidate, Michael Olusegun Abraham, losing out on the ticket.
Following the malpractice uncovered, the party’s Appeal Committee recommended the cancellation of the primary election and a fresh one conducted , this, however did not happen.
But the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chieftain, in an article titled “BOLA AHMED TINUBU AND THOSE WHO WANT HIM DEAD” said though the former Lagos State governor may be losing political ground, he will bounce back.
According to the former spokesman of ex-President, Goodluck Jonathan Presidential Campaign Organisation, Tinubu has proven to be a “tried and tested fighter.”
He said, “The truth is that Tinubu has lost much grounds and political mileage in recent times and, as more daggers are pulled out over the next few months and years it is bound to get worse for him.
“Yet that does not mean that he is finished. I say this because he is a tried and tested fighter and a formidable adversary who is quite capable of pulling the whole APC house down.
“It would be a fatal error for any of his adversaries, including President Buhari, Vice President Atiku Abubakar or Senate President Bukola Saraki, to underestimate him or dismiss his ability to fight back.
“In July 2016, just after my release from detention and during the course of an interview with Channels Television (which can still be viewed on Youtube) Mr. Seun Okinbaloye asked me whether I could ever contemplate going back to the APC and how I thought the ruling party would fare into the future.
“I told him that I would NEVER go back to the APC under ANY circumstances. I also told him that in any case by 2019 there would not be an APC, as it is presently constituted, left because the party would have spilt up into three separate and distinct political entities.
“I told him that the Tinubu group comprising of men like Baba Bisi Akande, Rauf Aregbesola, Akinwummi Ambode and others would establish one party, the Atiku Abubakar group comprising of men like Bukola Saraki, Rabiu Kwakwanso and many of the former PDP leaders and governors that had left for the APC when President Goodluck Jonathan was in power would establish another and that the Buhari group comprising of men like Nasir El Rufai, Bello Masari, Aminu Tambuwal, Rotimi Amaechi, Rochas Okorocha, Chris Ngige, Ogbonaya Onu, Adams Oshiomole and virtually the entire structure of the old CPC leadership in the core north would constitute yet another. I stand by this prediction.
“These three strong and equally forceful factions can be likened to the proverbial three blind yet ravenous wolves.
“They cannot stay in the same cage or remain on the same platform for long without tearing each other to pieces.”
Fani-Kayode further noted that up until the Presidential election was conducted last year, Tinubu led and “held together the south-western wing of the APC with an iron fist and he was the undisputed leader of the APC in that zone.
“All four APC governors from the south west and virtually every single party leader waited on his every word and he called all the shots.
“Sadly today, just over one year later, he is a caricature of his former self. Today Tinubu can only boast of having the ear and the full support of only two of those governors, namely Rauf Aregbesola of Osun state, who will NEVER betray him no matter what, and Akinwumi Ambode of Lagos state who will also stand firmly behind him until the very end,” he added.
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