Currency Swap: Repay Me With Kindness, Tinubu Tells Buhari

Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a former Lagos governor who has been touted as one of the most influential politicians in the South West region, appears to have confirmed suspicion that he doesn’t have President Muhammadu Buhari’s full support to emerge as the country’s next president.

The spokesperson for his presidential campaign council, Bayo Onanuga, provided the clue while reacting to the Buhari administration’s refusal to obey the Supreme Court’s order to suspend enforcement of the February 10 currency swap deadline.

The policy is partly aimed at politicians who have stockpiled billions of illicit funds for vote buying at the polls.

Both Buhari and Tinubu are members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and it is expected that the president would naturally support his party’s flagbearer to succeed him in 2023.

Onanuga, in a tweet on Thursday, however, suggested that although President Buhari has publicly supported Tinubu and led his recent campaigns to some states, the president’s body language says otherwise.

“Tinubu’s past support for Buhari should translate to Buhari’s support for Tinubu in 2023. According to Prophet Muhammed (PBOH): “If anyone does you a kindness, recompense him; but if you have not the means to do so, pray for him until you feel that you have compensated him,” said Onanuga who is the Director of Media and Publicity of the APC presidential campaign council.

Bayo Onanuga reacts to Buhari’s state broadcast.

While Buhari has expressed support for Tinubu’s ambition at different points, some of his statements have been described as the most reliable indicators that he may not want the former governor to succeed him.

In his state broadcast on the naira redesign policy on Thursday, Buhari repeated his message to Nigerians to vote for whomever they like from whichever political party during the February 25 presidential election.

“I urge every citizen therefore, to go out to vote for their candidates of choice without fear, because security shall be provided and your vote shall count,” said the president.