It was no surprise when he declared his ambition for the 2023 presidential election. A man who had hand in the building of the modern Lagos. Born on 29 March, Bola Ahmed Tinubu joined the Social Democratic Party in 1992, where he began his political career. He was a part of the Peoples Front faction, which was headed by Shehu Musa Yar’Adua and included politicians like Umaru Yar’Adua, Atiku Abubakar, Baba Gana Kingibe, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Abdullahi Aliyu Sumaila, Magaji Abdullahi, Dapo Sarumi, and Yomi Edu. In the short Nigerian Third Republic, he was elected to the Senate, representing the Lagos West constituency.
Bola Ahmed Tinubu became the Governor of Lagos state in May 1999 and revolutionized the state raising many eyebrows despite facing many obstacles. He spent a significant amount of money on state education during his eight years in administration. Additionally, he started new road building that was necessary to accommodate the state’s rapidly expanding population.
During his tenure as the Governor of Lagos state, he was involved in a disagreement with the federal government over the decision to create more Local Council Development Areas (LCDA’S) to accommodate the rising population of Lagos state however, this led to the seizure of the funds meant for the local councils. A court decision was later ruled in Tinubu’s favour and the funds were later released.
Among the achievement of Tinubu during his tenure as the Governor include the execution of the following policies which are; the Free Health Scheme, the Establishment of The Lagos State Action Committee on AIDS (LSACA) to control HIV/AIDS, Rollback Malaria program (Free malaria programme), Tuberculosis Control among others.
Bola Ahmed Tinubu popularly known as Jagaban assisted his fellow party member President Muhammadu Buhari to become the president and also brought together the leaders of the party to make the party stronghold against their major contenders (PDP).
Moreover, Bola Ahmed Tinubu has also been criticized on various fronts. Some of the notable criticism against him is that people believe that his policies are more driven by personal self-preservation, hypocrisy, and double standards. Many more people disapprove of him because of his enormous wealth, the source of which has long been the subject of rumours.
Many also believe that Bola Ahmed Tinubu is the godfather of Lagos state and no decision in Lagos can be made without his acknowledgement. Tinubu is also seen as someone who cannot be objected and his decision must be followed. As a Leader in the All Progressive Congress, he picks who he wants to contest and goes against those who he doesn’t want.
Tinubu as an intellect and a political strategist even have his loopholes which cannot be overlooked. He is detested by most youth due to the End Sars incident that occurred at the Lekki Toll gate which left many youths dead. During this incident, many people felt he could have intervened and prevented such since he controls Lagos state. Some others detest him because they believe he is old and fragile and will not be capable enough to hold the position of president of a nation.
In the end, the people will decide who will be elected and the tactics and strategy of the wise politician, Jagaban will be tested.
About the author
Timileyin Abdulsalam is a CIAPS Graduate of Media & Communication.
