Lagos based pastor and politician, Tunde Bakare, on Friday, October 15, met President Muhammadu Buhari behind closed doors at the Presidential Villa, in Abuja.
Bakare, who spoke with State House correspondents, shortly after his meeting with the President, described his visit to Aso Villa, Nigeria’s seat of power, as private.
He condemned the on-going call for power shift across the country as unfortunate, saying it is based on primal sentiments. He advised Nigerians to rather concentrate more on competence, when electing the country’s next president in 2023, and shun baseless sentiments.
Pastor Bakare, in his respective view, said, regions of the country, from which contestants for the presidential race come from, does not really matter; but that the country deserves the best candidate as president come 2023.
“I said it on the October 3, it is our immaturity politically and otherwise that makes us say that power must either be in the North, or be in the South, instead of looking for the best, fittest or most competent and people of character who love this country. (News Agency of Nigeria)
Cleric Bakare, during the State of the Nation Broadcast, (SOTNB), held at the Citadel Global Community Church’s premises on Sunday October 10, 2021, said,
“… Despite the historical dominance of the north in the governance of this nation, data from the World Bank indicates that, as at 2016, the North accounted for 87% of the poverty in Nigeria.
He believes that, if where the president comes from really matters, then the Northern region, “having produced heads of states, and presidents for over 40 out of 61 years since independence”, should “be the richest, most progressive and most developed” areas in the country. He submitted that, “may the best, and best of Nigerians, rise, whether they are from the East, West, North or South.”
Pastor Tunde Bakare, again, reiterated the need for restructuring the country, saying the nation will move forward if this is done. He believes that, restructuring Nigeria can be done without shooting guns. He called on the government not to remove the ancient landmarks laid by Nigeria’s founding fathers, adding that, the country has failed because she did not to heed the political admonitions of her founding fathers.
He opined that, Nigeria is ‘better-off together as a nation,’ than people going their separate ways; and this to him, must be ‘based on equity, justice, fair play and the rule of law.’