2023: Osinbajo tackles Tinubu, says it’s insulting, provocative for APC flagbearer to say he had forgiven him
Anthony Iwuoma
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has taken exception to a statement credited to the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2023 elections, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, saying he had forgiven the vice president, for contesting against him in the APC primaries.
Tinubu had while addressing some political loyalists to Osinbajo during the APC presidential primaries in Kano said he had forgiven the vice president for God’s sake.
“I have nothing against him. I have been to his House after the primaries. I have seen him on the day of the goodwill message to the retreat organised by the president.
“And a man who forgives—a man who asks for forgiveness from Allah fully deserves forgiveness. If you cannot give forgiveness, how are you asking from Allah? To me, it is over,” Tinubu had said.
However, Osinbajo frowned at Tinubu’s statement, and described it as unmitigated insult.
According to the Osinbajo Support Movement, OSM, any talk of forgiveness between the Tinubu and Osinbajo is not only an insult but also provocative.
In a statement by its National Coordinator, Liberty Badmus, OSM stated that its attention had been drawn to a news report where someone and his co-travellers, while expressing his support for Tinubu begged for the forgiveness of “our principal as well as members of the support groups during the primaries of the party”.
The statement read: “While the OSM welcomes the need for the APC flag-bearer and other presidential aspirants to come together, the group rejects the use of the word ‘forgiveness’ and the implications attached to it
“We note just like the flag-bearer stated that both the VP and himself have met at least twice since after the primaries, any attempt to take a revisionist perspective by insinuating that an offence had been committed because a sitting VP decided to run for the Office of President is an unmitigated insult, completely unnecessary and such narratives ought to be totally discouraged.
“We recall that a meeting of APC Elders in the Southwest ahead of the primaries where the aspirants had resolved the issue concluding that all the aspirants had the right to contest. It is the spirit of that meeting that should be maintained not a derogatory effort which undercuts the solidarity required to take both the flag-bearer and the aspirants including the VP forward.
“Everyone who supported the Vice President has the right to support whoever they wish after the primary, and Vice President Osinbajo has made it clear that people are free to support the party’s candidate but no one should however ridicule us and our principal by going to beg for forgiveness.
“Nigeria runs a democratic democracy, and approves anyone within the legal ambit of our laws (constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the APC constitution) to seek to be elected for President and other elective offices as so desired.
“For the umpteenth time, we state that His Excellency, the Vice President has not committed any crime or offended anyone by seeking to serve his country in the capacity of President.
“We wish to call on Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to face his campaign and ignore elements who want to want to benefit from him by regularly invoking Osinbajo.
“Osinbajo has since moved on and he is vigorously facing the task of nation building for which he was elected Vice President.”
Recall that Osinbajo had served as Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice of Lagos State during the tenure of Tinubu as governor between 1999 and 2007. Tinubu came first in the APC presidential primaries, beating Osinbajo to a distant third position.
