Is Remi Tinubu Next Lagos Governor?

What started out as rumour is spreading like wildfire. It seems everywhere online, creating an instant buzz and talking point on the internet.



It is not totally surprising though. As the race for 2015 gathers momentum, speculations about who will occupy which position have become the subject of intense public debate. Usually and as it is with our brand of democracy, they first brew like the anecdotal ‘’beer parlour gossip’’ but they soon begin to gain a life of their own over time.



But as it has often been said, there can never be smoke without fire.



Also in this clime, politicians are usually evasive in declaring their intention for public office. Even when they so desire to run, they will still “insist on consulting with their consistency’’. And when their posters begin to appear like a thief in the night in the public space, they will lay the blame at the doorsteps of their detractors or play the ostrich altogether. It is all part of the game we have become familiar with. In recent times, speculations about Senator Remi Tinubu’s candidacy have begun to seep into public consciousness.



Mrs. Tinubu needs no introduction. She is the wife of Ahmed Bola Tinubu, the past two-term governor of Lagos and the leader of Action Congress of Nigeria. Between 1999 and 2007, she was the First Lady of Lagos. In 2011, when Mrs. Tinubu became a senator, her emergence was adjudged controversial. A rival candidate was alleged to have been pressured to step down for her at the party’s primary. It is thus understandable if there is a sense in which her political career has been tied to her husband’s influence.



Many people are of the opinion that Mrs. Tinubu’s foray into politics has largely been influenced by her husband’s clout. For example, the speculation about her governorship ambition is seen as an attempt to extend the leverage she has enjoyed thus far. It is also viewed in the public domain as a way to strengthen her family’s hold on Lagos politics. If truth be told, there is no denying the fact that the former First Lady had benefitted from her closeness to the party’s top hierarchy. But such manner of emergence has been the story of those that have gained political power in the party.



In a true democracy, candidates such as Mrs. Tinubu, must be free to aspire to any position they so desire no matter their family affiliations. But such aspirations must not be to unfairly leverage on their spouses’ political influence.



Source: Punch Nigeria









via 247naijagossip