Feature: Open letter to Prof Yemi Osinbajo, after the declaration of his Presidential ambitions

Dear Pastor Yemi Osinbajo,

Welcome to the 2023 presidential race.

Being a man of gifted oratorical skills, I expect a smooth, endearing and uplifting speech at your declaration. I will be watching.

I will be watching and paying attention, not to the flowery delivery you will have, but to the kernel of the speech, particular on the issues that affect Nigeria and Nigerians.

Having spent nearly eight years as a key member…an influential member of the Buhari administration and indeed one who had acted as president on a number of occasions when the president was away – experience you tout as a major qualifying factor for the presidency – I expect you to come today and tomorrow with specific solutions to the issues that plague Nigeria…solutions that your supporters claim you were unable to implement because you were not the President.

Examples of what I think the vast majority of Nigerians want to hear from you:

1. Your thoughts on open grazing across the country. Are Fulani herdsmen responsible for the killing or farmers across the country and the raping of their wives? If so, should they be allowed unhindered movement across the country?
2. Which tribe(s) are the major kidnappers? Why are they kidnapping? What are the solutions to kidnapping?
3. What are your solutions to terrorism in general? Is our military equipped enough to deal with this issue? If not, what specific solutions do you have?
4. Do you believe in State Police? Do you think security outfits like Amotekun should be fully armed and given authority to arrest criminals, including erring Federal law-enforcement agents? Do you think Amotekun should have the full complements of a regular law-enforcement outfit, like intelligence collection sub-elements?
5. What are your thoughts on Restructuring? Should Nigeria go back to regional government structuring, or should we keep the current states? Do you think the states/regions should control more of the resources generated by Federal agencies from their territories?
6. What are your specific solutions to Nigeria’s epileptic electricity supply?
7. How will you ensure uninterrupted supply of fuel at a price affordable to Nigerians? Will you continue subsidy?
8. How do you plan to quickly stabilize the Naira?
9. What are your thoughts on the secessionist groups of Yoruba Nesan and IPOB? How, specifically, would you assuage their feelings and unite the country without getting AREWA to start its own agitation?
10. Will you commit to reforming the judiciary such that corruption cases are adjudicated with dispatch?
11. Do you believe the size of government is too burdensome and too expensive? If yes, how and where will you cut?
12. What are your solutions to ASUU strikes?

These are just a few of the questions that your social media warriors blamed Alhaji Ahmed Tinubu for not addressing when he began his own consultation. I hope you will demonstrate tomorrow that you are better prepared; that you had these great solutions, but you were unable to proffer them for almost eight years while you were vice president.

I hope you will go further by listing your specific accomplishments in the almost eight years that you were vice president – the critical problems besetting this country that you helped solve.

I hope you will fight a good battle for the nomination…a battle that will enrich our still-nascent democracy.

I hope your campaign will be respectful and decent, unlike what your “SPONSORED Speculators” (emphasis on Sponsored…sponsored by you) had been doing for about two years now.

On your behalf, they had embarked on a vicious social media campaign designed to de-market and destroy anyone that might pose a threat to your ambition, particularly your benefactor and party leader, Alhaji Tinubu.

On your behalf, they employed intimidation. It didn’t work. They employed character assassination. It didn’t work. They said he was dying. He is still alive, well and kicking…hard.

On your behalf, they blackmailed him by projecting their real intent on him…that he wanted you and others to clear the field and crown him President. We now know, from events since the past few months leading to tomorrow (your reported formal declaration day), that it was also a huge lie.

On your behalf, they recruited witting and mostly unwitting internet warriors, reached out to those they knew were supportive of Alhaji Tinubu, tried inducement, tried subterfuge, tried religion, tried all sorts of under-handed tactics to get otherwise decent people to become your attack dogs. They succeeded in that respect to some extent.

I say “on your behalf” because you heard about all these and did not come out to repudiate any of that nonsense.

May success come to the candidate that will be better for Nigeria and Nigerians – all Nigerians.

Amen.

Yours sincerely,
Biodun Ladepo.

Doxology.