The Akwa Ibom Steering Committee of the ‘Tinubu Support Group’ has confronted Bode George, a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, over his comments against Bola Tinubu’s presidential ambition.
Tinubu announced last week his intention to run for president in 2023 on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, or APC.
The declaration, on the other hand, has elicited a wide range of reactions across the country, to which George has contributed his voice.
George, in an interview, described Tinubu’s ambition as a “huge joke” saying, “the Presidency of Nigeria is not for characters like Bola Tinubu. Look at how he mismanaged the resources of Lagos State. It is surprising that he can even dream of becoming the President of Nigeria. He is living in cuckoo land.”
Irked by the PDP stalwart’s comments, the Pro-Tinubu group in Akwa Ibom, which held a press conference on Saturday in Uyo, the state capital, said George’s viewpoint indicated that he is either living in antiquity or is out of touch with reality.
The coordinator of the group in the state, Hon Inyang Ifiok, in his address said, “Bode George is entitled to his opinion and we have freedom of expression. So, if he says Tinubu who is being celebrated across the political divide of this country, his declaration is a huge joke, it, therefore, means that he is still living in the ancient days, not the world of today.”
He described Tinubu’s declaration as the “greatest political news of the year, adding that it ignited a spark that triggered two APC members to also declare their interest in the presidential race.”
He added, “It came strong and powerful, reverberating across the entire direction of our national political landscape. It stirred the somewhat somnolent political space of activities in the land into a frenzy.
“Shortly, after it broke it ignited a spark that compelled at least two other top members of our party, the APC, to also declare interest in running for the office as president of our motherland. The days head will be interesting to witness”
Inyang said no Nigerian should make mistake about Tinubu’s presidential aspiration, adding that by declaring his intentions, he was responding to the yearnings of Nigerians to step into the nation’s political “cockpit” and fly the country above its current socio-economic and political issues, above insecurity and above underdevelopment into a destiny of a contended citizenry.