Tinubu, Buhari Fallout Over Ministerial Nominees, Tinubu Placed On Security Watch
Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and others, including
some members of the National Assembly, over an alleged plot against President
Muhammadu Buhari.
The plot, which presidency sources said is not unconnected to the decision of
President Buhari to dump several nominees submitted by some party leaders and
political godfathers for ministerial appointments, has led to a move to mend fences
between the two major contending forces in the Senate.
Intelligence reports had revealed that some state governors, party leaders and
political godfathers, whose nominees were dumped by the President for his
preferred candidates, have begun to “unleash their goons in a well coordinated
media campaigns and groups’ protests against Mr President’s choice of ministerial
nominees”
Saturday Sun gathered that of particular interest to some intelligence agencies
keeping a tab on the plot “is the decision of an APC leader in the South-West to jet
out of the country the moment he realised that he could not push through his
ministerial nominees, only to be coordinating attacks against the President from his
base outside the country.”
A top official in one of the nation’s intelligence agencies leading investigations into
the alleged plot told Saturday Sun on condition of anonymity, “because the
investigation is still at the preliminary stage”, that “a particular political godfather
who has been spearheading the campaign to remove the Senate President, Dr
Bukola Saraki has suddenly turned round to be reaching out to Senators in his
(Saraki’s) camp to mend fences so as to form a joint force to launch an attack
against the President.”
“We are following all of these clues and leads including promises by the same
person to help crush the criminal charges against a leading Senator. This brand of
politics will in no way help the ruling party and the nation. One man must not have
his way in all cases and in every arrangement”, the source added.
Though the source did not specifically mention Tinubu in the chat, the APC chief
tain, however, fits into all the descriptions. It was also gathered that the presidency
is already bracing up for the emerging development.
It was not clear as at press time whether the Saraki camp will accept the peace
deal being offered by the party leader and support the alleged plot against the
President coming at a time when the relationship between Buhari and Saraki
appears to be coming on track.
A close associate of Tinubu, who pleaded for anonymity, however, told Saturday
Sun that indeed the APC leader was badly hurt by the rejection of his ministerial
nominees by Buhari, he would, however, not have a hand in pulling down “a house
he almost single-handedly built with his efforts and resources.”
Saturday Sun had in an exclusive report before the release of the ministerial
nominees reported the decision by President Buhari to dump over 73 names
submitted to him by state governors, APC leaders and political godfathers to draw
up a list of his own choice of ministerial nominees.
Indeed, when the list was unveiled last week, many of the party leaders including
Tinubu were upset and left in shock. Rather than pick the choice of Tinubu in the
South West, Buhari selected former Governors Babatunde Fashola (Lagos) and
Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), both estranged political godsons of Tinubu.
The party leader could also not get human rights activist, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN),
Prof Pat Utomi and his former Commissioners for Information and Finance in
Lagos, Messrs Dele Alake and Wale Edun, respectively on the list. Falana had been
tipped to emerge as the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice,
Alake as Information Minister and Edun as Minister for Finance.
In Osun, while Governor Rauf Aregbesola is pushing the nomination of his
immediate predecessor, former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola, in deference to an
accord leading to the latter’s defection to APC, Tinubu is said to be backing the
governor’s Chief of Staff, Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola, who is his (Tinubu’s) blood
relation.
In Ondo, the party leadership in the state is pushing the nomination of its
governorship candidate in 2012 poll, Chief Rotimi Akeredolu SAN, while Tinubu is
backing his bosom friend and APC National Vice Chairman, South West, Chief Pius
Akinyelure.
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