By Bala Ibrahim
In constructing the idiom, he who has the last laugh, or he who laughs last laughs best, the ambition of the English man was to say, someone would ultimately laugh with satisfaction, after being scorned or regarded as a failure. In other words, triumph or success would come in a way that the person has an advantage over another, and laughs at the person losing.
Today, in Lagos, the All Progressive Congress, APC, hosted its Presidential flag bearer, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to the grand finale of the Presidential campaign, and from the look of things, the Asiwaju has shown the power of evoking interest from all corners of the country, and the attraction came with an outlandish allure.
For starters, bubbling Lagos was literally brought to a standstill for the homecoming of the Asiwaju. President Muhammadu Buhari was not only physically present at the rally, but lifted up the hand of the Asiwaju, and proclaimed him the next president of the country, God willing. This has quashed the notion of the naysayers, who have been heating up the polity with all manner of insinuations. Yes, at the risk of gloating, I say Asiwaju has laugh last and is on his way to laughing best.
The rally, which held at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere, had in attendance an unprecedented number of people, who besieged the venue from all directions, just as the streets were lined up by another crowd from the airport to Surulere. Everyone that matters in the APC was there.
On arriving at the podium, after going through the protocol, the national chairman of the party, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, Turakin Keffi, flanked by some members of the national working committee, spoke with advisability, thus:
“Today, we are here not for a very long rally. We are here for a very symbolic rally, where the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, has undertaken to get the party to bring our candidate to his home state at the end of a very, very tasking campaign. The President was out of the country but made sure he came back in time yesterday to be able to bring Asiwaju home, so that he can cast his vote at home in his voting unit. We’ve gone the length and breadth of this great country since the campaign started and we thank God Almighty, for ensuring for us a successful campaign tour of the country. If we take a measure of the turnout in all the states that we have visited so far, we can say by God we are there. We have arrived. We have the president, who by the grace of God would be successor in office to President Muhammadu Buhari. It is our hope that the legacies that have been built over the years by the outgoing administration would be not only maintained but improved upon. For this to happen, we need first and foremost, your votes, your votes, your votes”-.Sen.Abdullahi Adamu.
Almost running concurrently with the rally was a national broadcast by President Muhammadu Buhari on the NTA, viz:
“Fellow Nigerians, God has once again brought us to another season of general elections across the country. I am therefore calling on all of you, to exercise your franchise in a peaceful atmosphere. I am calling on specifically our traditional leaders, religious leaders and parents, to warn their followers and wards alike, not to allow themselves to be used by a few to forment trouble. I want to assure you that the Government has made adequate security measures to allow everyone to come out and cast their votes. I am therefore appealing to everyone, to give them the necessary support. Fellow Nigerians, I want to seize this opportunity to once again thank you for electing me to be your President on two occasions. I am not a contestant in this election, but my party, the All Progressives Congress, has a candidate in the person of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. As I mentioned before, Tinubu is a true believer in Nigeria, who loves the people and the development of our country. I am calling on all of you to vote Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He is reliable and I trust he would build on our achievements”.
Gingered by the broadcast, and the physical presence of the President, the Asiwaju wasted no time in showing his gratitude to the President, viz:
“As you worked hard for me, I will work hard for Nigeria. All the plans set out in our Action Plan for Renewed Hope for Nigerians will be pursued rigorously. Thank you Mr. President, you gave me the courage, the confidence and the will to pick right”- Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
The election is for Saturday, just few days away. All credible polls and sources of genuine and legitimate data have given the win to Tinubu, making the Asiwaju smile with swagger, because of the allure of his last laugh today in Lagos.
