2023: Pressure group rallies support for Tinubu

.....target 10m votes in S/West

By Oladunni Adeniyi

A pressures group, under the aegis of 'BAT parliamentarians of All Progressives Congress (APC)' has begun door-to-door campaign and grassroot mobilization as part of efforts to rally support for the party's presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, ahead of February 25 election.

The group, which consists of serving and former legislators, said its mandate was to deliver 10million votes for Tinubu in the South West at the election.

The Coordinator of the group in Ogun State, Abiodun Abudu-Balogun who disclosed this on Thursday during the lawmakers' meeting in Abeokuta, the state capital, said the group has the mandate to mobilize and engage in a door-to-door campaigns across the state for Tinubu.

Abudu-Balogun said "the Tinubu project is a collective project. By his nature, Tinubu has touched so many lives, nationally. He has built many bridges. He has empowered the Yorubas, Hausas, Fulanis, Igbos, Efiks, Ibibios, Tivs, anybody. Tinubu is the highly detribalized Nigerian". 

"In his political career, he has interacted with almost who is who in this country. What I am saying in essence is that Tinubu, being a master politician, has friends and well-wishers even in other political parties. We are taking advantage of that. The Tinubu project should be seen as a common project of all irrespective of the political parties".

Abudu-Balogun said, "the mandate of this group was to carry Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu/Shettima message down to the grassroot". 

"Massive mobilisation, massive education and massive door-to-door campaigns all over the states in the South West region of the country. Our job is grassroot mobilisation to deliver Tinubu/Shettima mandate by ensuring that the candidate get the maximum number of votes during the February 25 Presidential election".

He said the group has been mobilizing and reaching out to lawmakers from other parties, saying Tinubu's candidacy should be seen as a "common project of all."

"So, we are reaching out to them, we are talking to them, we are mobilizing them to see Tinubu as a common project of all irrespective of the political parties."

An elder statesman, Senator Akin Odunsi, the first female Speaker in the state, Hon Titi Oseni, one of her predecessors, Suraj Adekumbi, were among top former parliamentarians who attended the meeting. 

In their separate remarks, Odunsi and Oseni called on the residents of the State to collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to enable them participate in the coming elections. 

They expressed worry that with few weeks to the elections a huge number of  PVCs have not claimed by the owners.