President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday assured supporters of the ruling All Progressives Congress that he will continue to campaign for their presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, as the next president of Nigeria.
Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Garba Shehu, said in a statement that Buhari gave this assurance while addressing a mammoth crowd of APC supporters at the presidential campaign rally in Lafia square, where he endorsed Tinubu and Shettima’s candidature and the second-term bid of Governor Abdullahi Sule.
The President thanked party supporters for defying the hot weather and standing in the sun for hours to express their support for Tinubu and Sule, the APC flag bearers in the forthcoming presidential and gubernatorial elections, respectively.
The statement quoted Buhari as saying, ‘‘I congratulate and assure you that God willing, we are going to win through and through. As Tinubu said in his speech, I have known him for more than 20 years ago, and I will continue to campaign for Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He is a committed Nigerian, and I believe he will give his best to Nigeria.
‘‘Also vote for Abdullahi Sule for a second and final term as governor.”
On his part, Tinubu thanked the President for being the ‘‘poster boy’’ of his campaign, fighting and working hard for the survival of Nigeria.
‘‘Nigeria is surviving as a nation. Because of constitutional democracy, we would have asked you to continue, but you said no, you are going back to Daura, your hometown,’’ he said.
The APC presidential candidate also used the occasion to lambast those insinuating that his relationship with the President is frosty, saying: ‘‘Those who think there are cracks in our friendship and relationship would continue to be disappointed and have their short times joy limited. Ours is not about the individual but about nation building, honesty, integrity and character.”
Comparing President Buhari to great and courageous leaders like Abraham Lincoln, the APC presidential flagbearer praised him for remaining focused despite the distractions.
Tinubu promised that under his presidency, Nigeria would recover from all challenges because of the courage and resilience of its citizens.
He added that his administration would prioritize agriculture, build the nation’s mineral resources and create wealth for Nigerians.
‘‘We will work hard. We promise you that your children and grandchildren will have no regret about this nation and ourselves,’’ he said.