by 
Only the politically daft will discountenance the tempo of political activity toward 2023 in the camp of Bola Tinubu, former NADECO chieftain, erstwhile Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and two- term elected governor of Lagos state.
Being a seasoned politician, Jagaban’s ‘war room’ would have tested waters through scientific and other intellectual processes to determine the likelihood of his acceptability and possibility of winning a presidential contest even before the smokes of rumor hovers the political air of Nigeria. Afterall, M.K.O. Abiola did some research before venturing into the presidential race and it was confirmed he had the likelihood of winning.
Much as there are other potential contenders for the 2023 presidential position, the Tinubu camp has set the agenda and the discourse early in the race. It is therefore proper to look at the merit or otherwise in the quest.
As president, can Bola Tinubu reverse the absurdity that makes the preteens solicit motorists on Clinic Road inward Adekunle, Ebute Metta area at the hours they are supposed to be in bed? Will Jagaban be able to prevent these potential loose cannons that have never seen love either from their parents or the governments of their beloved country?
What will Asiwaju do differently on the myriads of security challenges raging from terrorism, kidnapping, banditry, cultism and other social crimes?
How will he achieve cohesion in the restiveness and mutual suspicions of the different nationalities that form Nigeria?
How would he rejig the economy to work for all?
How would the police be reformed?
How can there be prosperity for all?
What magic wand does Bola Tinubu possess that will enhance human dignity and self esteem?
Lastly, will there be benefits for citizenship?
The answers to all the above revolve around leadership qualities which bother on the following attributes; honesty; compassion; integrity; confidence; and flexibility. This writer will add courage and dynamism.
Bola Tinubu is loved and despised depending on the side of the divide. But first and foremost, how his associates will rub pumice on his public persona dogmatic perception remains a daunting task.
Is Asiwaju sympathetic to the deplorable? Do they enjoy his backing? It looks very strongly that they enjoy his backing.
Is Asiwaju corrupt as being perceived by some people or just the imaginations of those who are envious of him? To the extent that no court of competent jurisdiction has convicted him, and to the extent that he was discharged and acquitted by Code of Conduct Bureau/Tribunal, ‘Ei incumbit probatio qui dicit, non qui negat’ subsists here.
Compassion:
The way you treat others determine how compassionate you are. Some intangibles matter a lot. Lagos Citizens Mediation Center is a good reference point to ease litigation burdens of the poor and in the process get justice.
Jagaban’s greatest attribute is in his ability to forgive and re-absorb to his large political family, political traitors. Tinubu rewards loyalty too.
Flexibility:
If Goodluck Jonathan succeeded in giving a credible election, Tinubu’s flexibility, dynamism and adroitness engendered peaceful power transfer. The ultimate beneficiary, President Muhammadu Buhari confirmed during one of Tinubu’s birthday colloquiums when he said he wouldn’t know whether Tinubu used to sleep during the formation of the APC. His “Common sense” revolution helped calibrate the political disequilibrium in Nigeria; a beast ruling party in the center, the PDP, lost power to an equally behemoth opposition party, the APC. The process is helping to bulwark our democracy because the PDP has made sure that the APC is on hot seat.
Principle, Integrity and Reputation:
Tinubu’s political vision and mission has some dissimilarity with the overtly duplicitous philanderer party called the PDP. If all he wants in politics is to line his pockets, it costs him nothing to collaborate with the PDP. Like Buhari, like Tinubu; the PDP has never tickled the fancy of either of them; and that is a strong point of principle, integrity and reputation.
Courage:
Is Jagaban a man of courage? It is an understatement to describe him as a courageous man. He is a man of steel. Though a miniature; he sends the giants on errands.
The hallmark of Tinubu’s courage was when he confronted a bully in power. Jagaban dared the Lion in its den and through mother luck, he came out with minor bruises.
Dynamism:
Tinubu is dynamic and gifted. He is a perfect blend of the old and the new; the past and the present. Jagaban was born into the analogue generation but he caught up with digital generation.
Another very important attribute of the former Senator is his knack for spotting talents and putting them to rewarding services. Spotting talents and putting them to rewarding services is also a special attribute of Bola Tinubu.
Imperfections:
Like most Nigerian politicians captured in the intrigues of absurdities, Bola Tinubu is not immune from the dalliance with the good, the bad and the ugly. The three tendencies, though preposterous, are required to win political power in Nigeria through elections.
So sad! That is Nigeria’s political conundrum for now and maybe for years to come. By the subsisting electoral law, winners are not judged by simple majority only, there must be a spread across delineated zones where a politician is contesting.
Most times it is the survival of the fittest. Where a candidate is not popular, they attempt to cause confusion so that votes can be cancelled.
The ugly will do the onslaught, and the ugly will defend and protect.
The bad among the legal practitioners who know the truth of the dubiousness will lock horns with the good ones who want to uphold the truth. The good will deliver the judgment based on the sharpness of the arguments and facts presented before them. Majority of politicians are guilty of this perfidy that we have always grappled with, more especially since 1999. To this extent, Tinubu is not exonerated.
Curiously however, GEJ benefitted from a flawed process in his ticket with the late Umaru Yar’Adua but went ahead to sanitize the electoral process for him to lose.
Getting the diagnoses and prognoses of the Nigeria quagmire is difficult and simple. It depends on the leadership qualities earlier adumbrated in the course of this discourse.
Is Bola Tinubu the man for the job? We wait as events unfold.
