Osinbajo Wins Hearts of Delegates in Nationwide Tour

 Fejiro Johnson catalogues the rousing that greeted Vice President Yemi Osinbajo everywhere he went for campaign

 When Vice President Yemi Osinbajo visited Delta State on Thursday, April 28, the party members, elders, elders and delegates came out in droves to welcome him. There drumming, singing and dancing. The women at the venue of the delegates meeting sang songs in honour of Osinbajo, with one striking message.

In Pidgin English parlance, they sang “follow who know road,’  meaning, follow the person that knows the right way to go. Simply put, the song implies that Osinbajo is the most favourite among the APC presidential aspirants. This has been the key features of the VP’s campaign stops as he moved from one state to the other. The sheer excitements and jubilations at each stop reflect his wide acceptability and likeability among ordinary Nigerians across the country. It is also safe to say that his inspiring messages have also resonated with most Nigerians.

Osinbajo rounded off his nationwide tour Wednesday night in Lagos. It was a homecoming for him. He’s lived in Lagos all his live and served the state conscientiously. Supporters had lined the roads from the airport as early as 10am for an event billed to start in the afternoon. He had earlier visited Benue State, and so his arrival in Lagos was delayed.
In this tour, each city presented its uniqueness. In northern Nigeria, excited crowd chanted ‘’Sai Buhari! Sai Osinbajo! You’re a good leader’’, indicating that they see the VP as an alter ego to the President. The close working relationship between the two men and the mutual trust and respect they have for each other have been a refreshing departure from the past.

In the South-east, the people greeted him with utmost respect and adoration as they sang “Ndewoo” to him with gusto. “God has already chosen you from childhood,” the Eze Imo, HRH Eze Emmanuel Okeke, said to the VP. The Igbos are particularly hospitable, industrious and warm. So are most Nigerians, actually. In the South West, they agree that Osinbajo is indeed a true Omoluabi, a man of honour, virtue and integrity. In the South South, they welcome him with open arms for leading government’s efforts to restore peace and stability in the region.

The VP exudes humility in all his engagements. He’s been quick to acknowledge that APC has other competent aspirants for the position of president. But there is an undoubted unanimity in the voices of delegates and people on the streets, matter of fact, among Nigerians nationwide and in the Diaspora, that Osinbajo is the best candidate and the right man to lead Nigeria come May 29, 2023.

In every state, Prof Osinbajo has received massive welcome – sometimes akin to a carnival atmosphere, with dancing, singing and banners dancing in the skies – from people, including on the streets, supporters, cultural dancers, residents and very enthusiastic party delegates, who always came out in numbers to declare their support for the VP’s candidacy. His decision to answer all questions and listens to comments from the delegates and party stakeholders in a town hall setting is a remarkable feature of his campaign. He also takes photographs with each delegate, one by one. I can imagine these pictures hanging in different sitting rooms across the country. No other aspirant has done that. Brilliant as ever, the VP laced his answers with wise words, wisecracks and explanations that left the delegates clapping enthusiastically and further pledging their support in words.

During his visit to Yobe State, the VP said of his suitability for the job of the president: “I put myself forward as a presidential aspirant and this is after having served as vice president for the past seven years under President Muhammadu Buhari and in that capacity as vice president, I have worked very closely with the president. “The president has given me all the exposure that any vice president could ask for. As a matter of fact, I must say that I doubt if there is any vice president who has had the number of responsibilities, the exposure both local and international that the president has given me in my service as vice president.

“I have also acted as president when the president was away on either medical vacation or his regular vacation. He has made sure that I have been given the opportunity to do serve our country in that capacity.  And over the past seven years, I have learnt a lot about governing a diverse and complex country like Nigeria.”

The Benin Monarch Oba of Benin, Omo N’Oba Uku Akpolokpolo, Ewuare II, caused a stir in the camps of other aspirants early in the campaigns when he said, “There is no gainsaying that they all probably shivering where they are because of your credentials; coupled with your calmness, your humility and great respect for culture and being a true man of God, who has the fear of God in his heart.”

Similarly, the Governor of Borno State, Babagana Zulum, noted that the VP did not need come to seek the votes of the delegates in the State because Borno is 100% in support of the VP’s aspiration. During the Vice President’s meeting with Borno delegates, Governor Zulum said “it is the prayers of all Nigerians at this critical time for a visionary leader that will take the country to a greater height; and that leader with the capacity and capability to achieve this is Vice President Yemi Osinbajo,” adding that, “this was the consensus of the people of Borno.” The consensus is nationwide, it rightly seems.

In Plateau, for instance, the roaring applause for Prof. Osinbajo was exciting as the Deputy Governor came up to introduce the VP. “APC Osinbajo! Everywhere you go! Osinbajo everywhere you go! Osinbajo!” the delegates went back and forth, in a sing song manner.

The VP’s kindness and humility were in a dramatic display in Osun State. Some supporters of Asiwaju Tinubu wore Tinubu’s branded caps and showed up at the VP’s event. Prof Osinbajo readily accepted their request for a photo op. A Facebook post of the young supporters with the VP later went viral soon after. Whatever the motives of the youngsters, the VP’s fatherly embrace was quite disarming.

It is now up to the delegates to choose widely. Osinbajo is the right man and the best candidate to lead Nigeria as president into its manifest destiny of greatness and prosperity.