Ahead the anticipated public declaration of his speculated ambition to contest the 2023 presidential election, a group has said Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is the most acceptable candidate to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari.
The group, Osinbajo Grassroots Organisation (OGO), said this in a statement at a press conference, tagged Osinbajo: “South-West Ready”, held at the Premier Hotel, Ibadan, Oyo State, on Thursday.
The statement was jointly signed by its Director Generals in the six states from the South-West states and read by Honourable Sulaiman Maito of the Ondo State chapter.
Other signatories to the statement included Princess Adetutu Adeyemi-Akghigbe (Oyo); Honourable Femi Adeleye (Ekiti); Engineer Olusoga Owoeye (Lagos) and Chief Samson Oderinde (Ogun).
Speaking, Honourable Maito said the group’s decision to stick with Osinbajo was informed the outcome of the positive responses it got across the country about the presidential ambition of Osinbajo.
He also said the group conducted a scientific and credible opinion poll, adding that it discovered that Osinbajo is acceptable across ethnic and religious divides.
“In the past few months we have traveled across the length and breadth of Nigeria to see and hear for ourselves what the other part of Nigeria has to say about the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo.
“These travels has culminated in the Kano Conference in the heart of Northern Nigeria and the Uyo Conference in the deepest part of the Niger Delta Region.
“It is a thing of joy to see and hear how acceptable Yemi Osinbajo is across our ethnic and religion divides. For the first time in the history of our country, we are having on our hands a Nigerian that seat well with all ethnic and religious groupings.
“We have a Nigerian that can harvest the fruits of our diversity for the advancement and prosperity of Nigeria. It is evident in Katsina, in Maiduguri, in Keffi, in Uyo and Benin and on the street of Ibadan.
“On behalf of the people of the South-West Nigeria, we want to say thank you to all Nigerians, North and South, Muslims, Christians and Animists who have embraced Yemi Osinbajo as the symbol of the new tribe, a representation of the new Nigeria that we all yearn for: beautiful in her diversity.
“Having traversed the length and breadth of Nigeria, meeting and talking to men, women, old, young, educated and uneducated, farmers, artisan and professionals, we are more than convinced that Professor Oluyemi Oluleke Osinbajo is the most acceptable Nigerian to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023.
“We believe he possess the capacity, the brilliance, the intelligence and the experience to take over the leadership of the country at this time in our journey as a nation.
“Talking about experience, Professor Yemi Osinbajo has been an Acting President for months and, by so doing, he has had the opportunity to govern Nigeria.
“And during this period, there was a consensus among Nigerians of all persuasions that he is quite capable and prepared to lead the country.
“Professor Yemi Osinbajo is an embodiment of brilliance, courage, empathy. He is a man given to persuasion, a committed patriot that is completely sold to the Nigerian project.
“We need him now to run for the President of Nigeria in 2023, to continue the trajectory of the Buhari administration in the area of economic diversification, infrastructure development, anti-corruption and the unmatched investment in security that has characterised the administration since 2015,” Maito said.
The group’s spokesman however said the endorsement of Osinbajo was not in ignorance of the contributions of some prominent Yoruba leaders to the development of the Yoruba Nation.
Honourable Maito recognised the roles of leaders such as Chief Bisi Akande, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Aremo Olusegun Osoba, Hon Wale Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, Raji Fashola, Otunba Gbenga Daniel and Dr Kayode Fayemi and Senator Ibikunle Amosun, among others.
He called on the aforementioned to join and support to the proposed Osinbajo presidency “and use him as the well best foot forward to bring the much desired development of this country.”
