Bola Tinubu, former governor of Lagos state, says “the selfless public and private contributions” of Bisi Akande, former interim national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), made Nigeria better.
Tinubu spoke on Thursday at the public presentation of ‘My Participations’, the autobiography of Akande.
The former governor praised Akande for being a model of public service, adding that his honesty and patriotism should be emulated.
“Our lives are better because of the selfless public and private contributions he has made to this national family we call Nigeria,” Tinubu said.
“Baba Akande represents what a public figure in Nigeria ought to be. He is what many should aspire to be.
“The book truly affirms that chief Akande places a high premium on integrity and truthfulness. It could not be otherwise.
“Indeed, many say President Buhari and chief Akande are two of a kind: honest, resolute, patriotic, and committed to their beliefs. I concur with that comparison.”
According to the APC chieftain, Akande was chosen as chairman of the Alliance for Democracy (AD), Action Congress (AC), and the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) because of his “rare combination of tolerance and vision”.
Tinubu added that the amalgamation of several opposition parties that led to the formation of APC in 2014 may not have been possible without Akande’s contribution.
“Without Baba Akande’s sage guidance, that merger (that formed APC) might never have come to pass,” he said.
“We owe him deep gratitude for his singular devotion to consummating the complicated merger in such a positive manner that then candidate, general Muhammadu Buhari, was able to demonstrate his popularity by achieving a monumental victory in the 2015 election.”