Seyi Gesinde
• We can’t meet you at home, join us at Kebbi Govt’s Lodge, Tinubu told as he lobbies APC Govs after their meeting with VP Osinbajo
The journey to the 2023 Presidency can be said to have started on a bright path for Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, as he had already secured the endorsement of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Governors and stakeholders before his declaration, The Daily Leaks can authoritatively report.
As earlier reported by this medium, the APC Governors under the aegis of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) had met with the Vice President, Prof Osinbajo, SAN, at home, inside his Aguda House residence at the Aso Rock Villla, the night before he formally declared his intention to contest for President.
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The meeting which was his last consultative session before he declared his intention on Monday, April 11, 2022, had in attendance, APC governors which include, Governors Dapo Abiodun (Ogun), Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), Abdullahi Sule (Nasarawa), Babagana Zulum (Borno) and Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos), and others.
Consequent upon VP Osinbajo’s forward move at being able to seek the consent and endorsement of the governors to run for President’s office in 2023, former Lagos State governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, a rival, who had made his intention known to the President earlier in the year during a visit to Aso Rock, but who equally declared that he was yet to inform Nigerians, quickly called for a meeting with APC Governors, almost immediately VP Osinbajo addressed Nigerians about his 2023 intention.
But in a significant move, a top source in the know confirmed to The Daily Leaks that the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) Asiwaju Tinubu’s preference to host them in the meeting, but asked him to rather meet with them at the Kebbi State Government Lodge in Asokoro.
Also, according to APC sources, it was authoritatively gathered that the first Presidential aspirant the Governors met with was the Vice President, while others including the Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi, Tinubu, among other APC Presidential aspirants had publicly declared their interest in the race ahead of the VP.
ALSO READ: 2023: Jubilant Nigerians celebrate Osinbajo’s declaration for President
“This is indicative of who is seen as the undisputed frontrunner and potentially the most popular of the aspirants,” an APC Party source said.
The source said, “while the Vice President only declared today Monday), having met the Governors yesterday (on Sunday), all the other aspirants had declared previously without the APC Governors consulting or meeting with them as a group.”
As reliably gathered, the meeting the APC Governors held with Tinubu the day after they met the VP in his residence was a knee-jerk reaction to the one the the Governors had with the VP on Sunday,” the Source said.
As also reliably gathered, it has not been decided and no mention of it yet if the Governors would meet other aspirants, which include, the Ebonyi State Governor, Senator Rochas Okorocha, Amaechi and others who have also publicly shown interest in the Presidential race.
It was on seeing the notice of the Governors meeting with the VP, he, Tinubu, it was reliably gathered, quickly instructed the Lagos State Governor Babjide Sanwoolu to mobilise his colleagues, the APC Governors, to see if it was possible for him to meet the governors first.
It was this request like a marching order, it was gathered made Sanwo-Olu to make rabid move to rally his colleagues to hold a meeting with the governors on Friday.
However, it was the unyielding attempts made to meet the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) with Kebbi State Governor, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, as its Chairman in his house, as they did with VP Osinbajo, that led to the holding of the meeting yesterday (Monday), but under the condition the APC Governors gave to meet with Asiwaju Tinubu, which was if he would be willing to come to a venue set by them, that is, the Lodge of the Kebbi State Government.
