President Bola Tinubu on Sunday reached out to his only primary challenger, Stanley Osifo, stating that he holds no resentment toward him.
The President also indicated his readiness to have discussions with political rivals and those criticizing his government.
Speaking to party stalwarts and followers at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja following his declaration as the APC presidential flagbearer for 2027 with 10.9 million votes, Tinubu noted that democracy thrives on a variety of concepts rooted in a collective national faith rather than single-minded thinking.
He said, “To those who despise our philosophy, we offer dialogue and engagement, not anger, confident that the sincerity of our purpose and the result of our work will speak for themselves.”
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Speaking straight to his competitor, he noted, “I owe you no grudge, including Osifo, who spent his money.”
Osifo, an Edo State businessman, bought the APC presidential nomination form for N100 million and declined to withdraw from the race when an intended consensus agreement for the primary broke down.
He secured 16,503 votes across the country. Tinubu remarked that friction with the opposition represents a vital element of democracy instead of a danger to it.
He said, “You may be angry with our party, we don’t have to agree. Democracy is sustained not by uniformity but by diversity, by a shared belief in the nation, and the blending of ideas.”
