Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, went philosophical on Saturday when he spoke at a roundtable in honour of the Oyo State Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, who just turned 69.
Speaking on the qualities of a leader, Tinubu said they were never complete until he or she was able to discover and develop successors.
According to him, Ajimobi has been able to balance this based on the emergence of a former Deputy Governor of Central Bank, Bayo Adelabu, as the APC’s governorship candidate in Oyo State.
Against the insinuation that he, Tinubu, has influence on Adelabu’s emergence, he conceded to being part of his discovery.
He said, “You can be successful as a leader if you have the capacity to construct and develop the road infrastructure and housing estates as bricks and mortals but, one critical element is that how many other leaders have you developed, particularly those who can succeed you? Otherwise, as you move, the empire crumbles. And you have critically done that. If they say I am involved in choosing your successor, it is part of human qualities as a leader to consult and find out or do due diligence about somebody’s background.
“So, for your choice of a successor, I will campaign and support and contribute to the success of Adelabu. He is a man who has worked in the private sector. I am from the private sector background, a man who has worked on the economic prognosis at macro and micro levels in the country as CBN Deputy Governor of Nigeria, is now trying to succeed you.
“The All Progressives Congress (APC) will support you, that is part of the leadership qualities that you have exhibited to protect that legacy and to build on it. You are just a foundation engineer who has just reconstructed Oyo State institutionally, who has reconstructed Oyo State infrastructurally.
“I say thank you and congratulations and I don’t feel bad if they say I have been associated in the process. If you do direct primaries again like you did, I will vote for your choice of successor because reform, reengineering and reinvigoration of institution can only continue beyond us and if the foundation is bad, the house will crumble.
“I saw in the debate yesterday, you could see the difference between a developmental economy and a container economy. Oyo State is going APC, Oyo State is APC, it is progressive politics. Our Moses has crossed the Red Sea, no going back to Egypt.”
Many dignitaries, including a former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, extolled the virtues of Ajimobi, describing him as an achiever.
