The Sultan of Sokoto ,Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III,yesterday made a case for the acceptance of the outcome of the February 25th presidential election by the generality of Nigerians.
“Leadership is from Allah Almighty given to whoever He wishes at any time He wishes and nobody can query Him or change what He did,”the chairman, Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs said as more congratulatory messages poured in from home and abroad for President-elect Bola Tinubu.
Some of the latest congratulatory messages came from the governments of Ukraine,and Pakistan as well as the leader of the Pan Yoruba group, Afenifere, Chief Reuben Fasoranti and the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC).
Abubakar,speaking during the coronation and presenting of staff of office to the new Emir of Dutse,Jigawa State,Alhaji Hameem Nuhu Sanusi ,asked the audience to “please support your leaders; do not argue with them or be disobedient. You can’t fight God’s making; accept them as they were being made by God Almighty who gives power to whoever He wishes.”
On the presidential election,he said : “God Almighty did what He wished. We should consider it an act of God. He made the winners and nobody can stop or change what God Almighty did.”
But he also enjoined leaders to do justice and be fair to their followers,while also asking politicians to encourage peace and stability.
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“You should not encourage any act that could disrupt peace,” he said.
Also speaking, the new Emir promised to continue with the legacy of his father and predecessor.
Don’t set Nigeria on fire, Afenifere leader warns politicians
Chief Fasoranti pleaded with Nigerians and foreigners who wish Nigeria well to steer clear of anything capable of endangering the peace of the country.
“We should all go peaceful, take lawful means, and thread legitimate and legal paths to rectify anything that might have, from their own point of view, gone wrong,” he said.
He said Tinubu should also be allowed to “ settle down immediately to tackle the enormous Nigerian project of tackling insecurity, solving our economic downturn, restructuring the country, and rebuilding a nation never so badly divided on ethnic, religious and corrupt lines.”
Fasoranti advised Tinubu to avoid making mistakes made by his predecessors by ensuring that every ethnic group was united in his administration,adding: “I did marvel at your doggedness, self-determination, self-assuredness, strong belief in self, ability to overcome daunting and ever surging challenges.
“I was also amazed at God’s grace on you that gave you the strength of character and such abundance of energy, that enabled you to navigate through all the ever emerging intricate problems, and made it possible for you to, against the wishes of some people, traverse successfully all the states of the federation, during the energy sapping marathon presidential campaigns. I am, indeed, glad to know that your hard earned victory had a very good national spread.
“You now have the opportunity. Now is the time for you to prove me right. I pray to God to be with you.
“In going about this, avoid the mistakes of some of your forebears. Be fair to all concerned. Go ahead to unite the country, see and treat the country as one. Be a federalist. Allow the big ethnic groups to exist and respect one another, but also allow the small ones to feel proud and wanted in the spirit of federalism as practised in the United States.”
OPC : Deliver dividends of democracy
In its own message,the OPC asked Tinubu to reunite “this severely divided, disunited and insecure nation.”
President of the congress,Otunba Wasiu Afolabi who signed the message recalled that Tinubu was in the trenches with the late Founder and President of OPC , Dr. Frederick Fasehun.
He said:“Leading a 200 million-strong nation like Nigeria will not be a small task. So much hope and expectations are pinned on Asiwaju and he cannot afford to fail.
“As OPC, our prayer is that God will grant the President-elect greater ability to record greater achievements than he did in his eight years as the governor of Lagos State from 1999 to 2007.
“May God grant this country peace, progress and prosperity, as it has never experienced, under this coming regime of Bola Tinubu. May God grant him the wisdom and the health to carry out this great task of nation building.
“However, because Nigerians have never been this divided and insecure since the end of the Nigerian Civil War, the first task that Bola Tinubu must undertake, when he is sworn in on May 29, is that of reuniting this severely divided, disunited and insecure nation.
“Tinubu must heed to the yearnings of pro-democracy organisations like NADECO and even our late founder, Dr. Fasehun, by laying the foundation of a Nigeria founded on the enthronement of true Federalism. We advise Tinubu to embark on the immediate restructuring of this country.
“Taming poverty and inflation remains an urgent task. The country’s four refineries must work before any move to tamper with the fuel subsidy. Other governments failed in giving Nigeria home-refined domestic fuel, Asiwaju must take this as an immediate challenge.
“Tinubu is a product of the struggle. He came from the trenches. He was forced to go into exile by the General Sani Abacha killer-squad, and he remained steadfast to the cause. He deployed his influence, connections and resources to advance the struggle of NADECO-abroad.”
Pakistani Govt. felicitates Tinubu
The Prime Minister of Pakistan Mr Shehbaz Sharif said his country and Nigeria had maintained cordial ties that would see an upward momentum particularly in the areas of defence, trade and economy.
He said:“My felicitation to Mr Bola Tinubu on his victory at the Nigerian presidential election.
“Pakistan and Nigeria maintain cordial ties that will see an upward momentum particularly in areas of defence, trade and economy.
“My best wishes to the President-elect.” Zelensky, UAE President, PM too
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the President and Prime Minister (PM) respectively of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), similarly congratulated Tinubu on his victory.
The world leaders’ message came 48 hours after Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated the president-elect of Nigeria and said he looks forward to a close cooperation.
A message conveyed by the UAE Ambassador to Nigeria, Fahad Al Taffaq, expressed the Middle East’s country’s readiness to cooperate with Tinubu, who is expected to be sworn in as Nigeria’s next leader in May.
“HH @MohamedBinZayed and @HHShkMohd congratulated President-Elect @officialABAT on winning the General Elections in Nigeria. We look forward to working together to advance the #UAE and #Nigeria cordial relations,” the statement reads.
CACOL:Your election is milestone in Nigerian history
The Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership (CACOL) described Tinubu’s victory as another great milestone in the history of the country and also showed the huge level of confidence reposed in him by the Nigerian people.
Chairman of the group, Debo Adeniran, said it was not particularly surprised by “your recent success at the polls because since your emergence as the flag bearer of your party the All Progressive Congress (APC), we had no doubt that you will come out victorious in the Presidential election.
“History will not forget in a hurry the energy and vigour you devoted to political activism and democratic struggles and your labour of love which was manifested in raising numerous others who are doing well in our political space today.
“With this victory, you have proved the ‘doubting Thomases’ who believed you will only record marginal success in the geopolitical zones where your political party held sway, wrong.
“Tinubu must heed to the yearnings of pro-democracy organisations like NADECO and even our late founder, Dr. Fasehun, by laying the foundation of a Nigeria founded on the enthronement of true Federalism. We advise Tinubu to embark on the immediate restructuring of this country.
“Taming poverty and inflation remains an urgent task. The country’s four refineries must work before any move to tamper with the fuel subsidy. Other governments failed in giving Nigeria home-refined domestic fuel, Asiwaju must take this as an immediate challenge.
“Tinubu is a product of the struggle. He came from the trenches. He was forced to go into exile by the General Sani Abacha killer-squad, and he remained steadfast to the cause. He deployed his influence, connections and resources to advance the struggle of NADECO-abroad.”
Pakistani Govt. felicitates Tinubu
The Prime Minister of Pakistan Mr Shehbaz Sharif said his country and Nigeria had maintained cordial ties that would see an upward momentum particularly in the areas of defence, trade and economy.
He said:“My felicitation to Mr Bola Tinubu on his victory at the Nigerian presidential election.
“Pakistan and Nigeria maintain cordial ties that will see an upward momentum particularly in areas of defence, trade and economy.
“My best wishes to the President-elect.”
Zelensky, UAE President, PM too
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the President and Prime Minister (PM) respectively of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), similarly congratulated Tinubu on his victory.
The world leaders’ message came 48 hours after Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated the president-elect of Nigeria and said he looks forward to a close cooperation.
A message conveyed by the UAE Ambassador to Nigeria, Fahad Al Taffaq, expressed the Middle East’s country’s readiness to cooperate with Tinubu, who is expected to be sworn in as Nigeria’s next leader in May.
“HH @MohamedBinZayed and @HHShkMohd congratulated President-Elect @officialABAT on winning the General Elections in Nigeria. We look forward to working together to advance the #UAE and #Nigeria cordial relations,” the statement reads.
CACOL:Your election is milestone in Nigerian history
The Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership (CACOL) described Tinubu’s victory as another great milestone in the history of the country and also showed the huge level of confidence reposed in him by the Nigerian people.
Chairman of the group, Debo Adeniran, said it was not particularly surprised by “your recent success at the polls because since your emergence as the flag bearer of your party the All Progressive Congress (APC), we had no doubt that you will come out victorious in the Presidential election.
“History will not forget in a hurry the energy and vigour you devoted to political activism and democratic struggles and your labour of love which was manifested in raising numerous others who are doing well in our political space today.
“With this victory, you have proved the ‘doubting Thomases’ who believed you will only record marginal success in the geopolitical zones where your political party held sway, wrong.
“You have also proved to the world that your claim of not losing any election right from the time you dabbled into politics is not a fluke.
“We hope you will bring your years of experience and transformational leadership style to bear in governing the affairs of this great country.”
What we expect from you by RTEAN
The National President of the Road Transport Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), Dr. Musa Muhammed Maotakobi,expects Tinubu to replicate across the country the development he recorded during his tenure as Lagos State governor “where he demonstrated a consistent fidelity to progressive and welfarist ideals, and an ability to build bridges across several divides.”
The RTEAN national president also urged candidates of the various parties in the just concluded Presidential and National Assembly elections to accept the outcome of the election in good faith, and pointed out that there is the need for the contestants and their supporters to keep their minds open and be ready to take whatever be the outcome of the presidential and National Assembly polls.
You’re a divine gift to Nigeria, say Bajowa
A veteran of the Civil War,General Olu Bajowa said he has no iota of doubt that Tinubu would be a success as president as he is “a divine gift to this great nation at this crucial moment when our country requires complete overhaul in the socio-political and economic spheres.”
He said: “It could be recalled that for over three decades now, you have remained most committed, the most consistent and most tenacious player on the political turf in Nigeria. You have demonstrated that you are a diehard progressive democrat, relentless bridge builder, uncommon developer of human capital resources, an avowed, firm believer in the rule of law, and in the unity, peace and progress of Nigeria.
Join hands with Tinubu to develop Nigeria, opposition parties told
The APC National Integrity Movement said all those who mean well for the growth and development of Nigeria as a nation should join hands with Tinubu to move the nation forward.
National Coordinator of the group, Abubakar Sadiqque Fakai who made the call at a news conference in Abuja said the President-elect was well equipped to take Nigeria to the next level.
Fakai expressed appreciation to President Muhammadu Buhari for creating an enabling environment for the conduct of a