Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, Chief Bode George, has hit back at the All Progressives Congress (APC)’s national leader, Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the later’s recent comment over his intention to run for the presidency in 2023.
Tinubu had told journalists at the Aso Rock Villa after a closed-door meeting where he informed President Muhammadu Buhari of intention to vie for the country’s topmost position that as a Nigerian, he has the right to be the king himself, not just a kingmaker.
He said, “I have never seen where it is written in the rule book anywhere in any country that a kingmaker cannot be a king unless he commits murder. I want to pursue my ambition without the title of a kingmaker.”
However, George, a former deputy national chairman of the PDP and one-time military governor of Ondo State said that in Yoruba land, it’s taboo for a kingmaker to be king.
In an interview he granted Vanguard said Nigeria doesn’t need the likes of Tinubu.
“I want to clear one area of discussion, there is nothing personal I have against (Ahmed Bola) Tinubu throwing his hat into the ring, but what I am saying (and it is not a dog fight), that we cannot continue to drift. This is a matter of life and death for our country, we cannot continue to drift. Yes, he (Tinubu) has a right to contest legitimately and he has declared but Nigerians must be very careful.
“The most annoying part is what he (Tinubu) said that he had been a kingmaker all his life and now, he wants to be king.
“Let me remind him (Tinubu) because he is a Yoruba man. In my part of the world, kingmakers are called afobaje. When you are a kingmaker, you do not throw yourself in the ring and say you want to be king.
“So, by saying publicly that he is a kingmaker and now he wants to be king, it is a fallacy. As Nigerians, we must challenge and x-ray anyone who throws his hat in the ring because when you come out to campaign, you tell people to trust you with the resources of the country for the betterment of the people.
“And so, if you look at his (Tinubu’s) past and all he has done, is he worth throwing tantrums all over the place? It is an insult to us.”
