Ahead of the 2023 elections, members of the National Coalition of Women for Osinbajo have said Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is one of the few Nigerian political aspirants who will not turn electoral victory into an opportunity for wealth accumulation and, therefore, Nigerian women will give him resolute backing.

The coalition’s chairperson, Rabi Dauda, also the leader of the pro-Osinbajo Progressive Women’s Group, said this on Wednesday while addressing reporters during a press conference in Abuja.

In its six-point declaration—which includes a call for the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), and the entire members of the Federal Executive Council to consider adopting Osinbajo as APC’s consensus presidential candidate—the coalition stressed that the 2023 general election would be a decisive turning point for APC and the entire nation.

The NCWO said, “We strongly affirm Nigerian women’s utmost confidence in the candidature of Professor Yemi Osinbajo as a people-focused leader with the suitable intellectual capacity and innate leadership qualities to move Nigeria forward, with emphatic attention to women progress and development.

“We demand the emergence of truly people-focused leadership at APC’s forthcoming convention and presidential primaries, either through consensus or voting processes, as we look forward to the unfettered emergence of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo as APC presidential flag bearer in 2023 elections.

“We strongly appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari, members of the Federal Executive Council, state governors, party leaders at federal, state, local government levels and all genuine progressives among delegates to APC presidential convention to ensure the actualisation of an Osinbajo presidency in 2023.”

The coalition also urged the APC Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee to strictly ensure that delegates to its national convention are not hijacked by those who have participated in looting state or federal resources in the past.

It said, “Our great party, APC, must seriously consider women’s collective calls for greater involvement of women and youth in critical positions within the party as well as local, state and federal administrations to be constituted by APC in 2023.

“While we commend the very gallant efforts of the Nigerian military and various security and law enforcement agencies involved in tackling the menace of insecurity across the nation, we also appeal for increased pace towards ending the insurgency, banditry, kidnapping, and other crimes as women and children tend to be the worst affected victims of criminality and other anti-social acts.

“Lastly, we reaffirm our faith in one united Nigeria, with hopes for the genuine realisation of its bright prospects under a people-focused leadership that only the APC can guarantee.”

The women’s coalition further enumerated various leadership parameters that put Vice President Yemi Osinbajo ahead of other presidential aspirants.

It said, “Without any iota of doubt, we believe that the emergence of Prof. Yemi Osinbajo as the 2023 presidential flag-bearer of the APC will allow Nigeria to realise these lofty collective progressive aspirations.

“Nigerian women believe in the candidature of Prof Yemi Osinbajo, a man whose credibility, objectivity and intellectual capacity have been proven over time. There is a need for effective steps to be taken to ensure that those who engaged in plundering state and federal coffers in the past are not allowed back into governance roles where trust and integrity matters.”

NCWO further appealed to party leaders and other stakeholders to deepen democracy, encourage productive dialogue, mobilise women and youth for optimal participation in the democratic processes and ensure free and fair elections.

I have seen a statement made by me, many years ago, to celebrate the 60th birthday anniversary of Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu making the rounds. Yes I did make that statement. And more of such will come in my autobiography. We, together, have seen good days and bad days.

I and Bola Tinubu have come a long way and we have been there for each other. So let no one use my acknowledgment of his good deeds and my refusal not to support him in his bid for Nigeria presidency to portray me as a betrayer.

Tinubu remains my leader and I will forever cherish him and the contributions he made to my Organisation during our fight against the military.

He however knows I don’t follow the herd. I make my choices based on very rigid parameters . He will tell you I am very Independent in my actions and ways.

As a third year university student my dad chose to be in NPN. I never considered the fact that he fed me and paid my school fees to join him in a party I despised. I went to UPN and became a youth leader.

Tinubu will tell you that whatever and whoever Ojudu is committed to is in for 100 percent commitment. Reasons I did rather faced torture and possible death in General Sani Abacha’s detention than reveal certain things they wanted me to reveal about him.

The idea that everyone who has related with Tinubu and disagrees with him on this Presidential bid is a traitor and a betrayal is puerile. Many of us, his associates, were not made by him as you also want the world to believe.

We were already made before meeting him and in the cause of relating we gave one another a helping hand. As far back as 1992 when I came to know him I was already one of the editors of a popular news magazine with a good standing too in the civil society. I walked out of my job when our billionaire publisher (Chief MKO Abiola) requested I and my colleagues to apologize to General Ibrahim Babangida over a story critical of the regime. That was 1992.

When I left that job, Chief Gani Fawehinmi, a man whom I was indebted to greatly (gave me a scholarship in my school days alongside King Sunny Ade) invested in my publishing platform (The News, publisher of PM news). The same one that was consequential in the battle to bring democracy back to Nigeria.

At the conclusion of that struggle, Chief Fawehinmi insisted we seat out politics. Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu disagreed with this notion, and I did as well. Against an obvious choice to blind loyalty, I went along with Senator Tinubu even serving severally in critical roles as he assumed the Governorship position. My actions angered Chief Gani so much he asked that I repay his investments. Guess what? I gladly did.

So if my principled stance against NPN, against IBB and against “siddon look” was not betrayal of my father, Chief MKO Abiola and Chief Gani Fawehinmi respectively, why would my principled stance against our leader present ambition be.?
So, on this matter of 2023 I wish him well but I cannot in good conscience give him my support or cast my vote for him in the coming primary. It is my right. I am above 60 years of age for God sake. I almost died seeking this inalienable democratic rights, held up in detention and severally tortured. Your god is not my god.

Let no one think he can browbeat or blackmail me to do what does not go with my conscience or my ideals. Enough of your phone threats and embarrassment of my family members.

I know Tinubu. I respect and adore him. Many of his latter day supporters do not even know him. If they do, they won’t resort to emotional and physical blackmail. When Tinubu decided to go against Afenifere and the Yoruba elders in 2003 by not supporting President Olusegun Obasanjo, he wasn’t betraying the Yoruba nation or a traitor to Afenifere. He made a choice and history has been his judge. Let history be my own judge too. When he supported Chief Olu Falae against Chief Bola Ige , our respected leader, who fought for him to emerge candidate of Alliance for Democracy in Lagos, no one shouted betrayal.

For the irritants who have been sending threat messages to me and members of my family or calling to abuse me for not supporting Tinubu, do know that is not democracy. It is something else. I spent my youth years fighting autocracy and intolerance of the military and I am still willing and ready, even now, to stand up for what I believe , even if it will cost me my life. Enough said.

_Senator Babafemi Ojudu writes from Abuja _