Awolowo, Courageous Leader I Draw Inspiration From – Tinubu

President Bola Tinubu on Friday paid glowing tributes to the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, whom he described as a leader that would not give in to cosmetics governance.

Tinubu emphatically declared that he drew inspiration from what Awolowo stood for politically and in social life to govern Nigeria.

President Tinubu stated these while delivering his address at the 117 posthumous birthday celebration of Obafemi Awolowo held at Ikenne in Ikenne local government area of Ogun State.

Tinubu, represented by the Minister of State for Health and Social Development, Dr Ishiaq Salako, pointed out that Nigeria has a leader in the mould of Chief Obafemi Awolowo currently leading the country.

Salako explained that all the reforms introduced by the President Tinubu-led administration upon assumption of office are those patterned after Awolowo, “as a man with clear vision, courage and tenacity to follow through.”

He explained that as the Premier of the old Western Region of Nigeria, Awolowo prioritized infrastructural development, especially building road networks, which are also part of what the Tinubu-led federal government is replicating throughout the country.

“The late Chief Obafemi Awolowo demonstrated that to go beyond cosmetic impact and profoundly change the trajectory of our development, we need leaders who are courageous, who are focused, visionary, who think not just of the immediate but of the future; leaders who act, not just talk.

“Records have it that Tinubu revolutionised road infrastructure by constructing over 2,000 kilometres of roads, including significant bitumen-surfaced roads, which was nearly 10 times the mileage inherited from British colonial administration.

“Nigeria under the Bola Ahmed Tinubu led government with the support of the citizens is on a clear path towards economic recovery and prosperity.

“Those reforms literally pulled Nigeria from the precipice of bankruptcy and fiscal collapse. Successive governments before May 2023 avoided addressing challenges head-on and chose to provide palliative treatment to an ailment requiring radical surgery.”

Salako called on all Nigerians to sustain their faith in the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu-led administration, stressing that all hands must be on deck to sustain and consolidate on those gains to translate to better living conditions for an ordinary Nigerian.

Earlier, the executive director of the Obafemi Awolowo Foundation,  Ambassador Olatokunbo Awolowo Dosumu, disclosed that the 2026 posthumous birthday memorial lecture provided an opportunity for “reflection, interrogation and recommitment” to the ideals of principled leadership, social justice, intellectual rigour, and public service for which her late father, Awolowo embodied during his lifetime.

“The memorial lecture remains one of the foundation’s most important platforms for engaging the enduring questions of leadership and nation-building. We are honoured that you have chosen to share in this intellectual and moral enterprise.”

In his goodwill address, former secretary general of the Commonwealth Nations, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, expressed serious concerns over the forthcoming 2027 general elections, even as he threw his weight behind President Tinubu’s search for foreign assistance towards ending insecurity.

Anyaoku, who spoke at the event themed, “Politics As Future Making: Awolowo And Leadership As Theory Of Action”, warned that Nigeria must address the critical national challenges, which included the worsening security situation, as well as the political climates ahead of the conduct of year 2027 general elections in order to safeguard its democratic reputation and sovereignty.

Corroborating Anyaoku’s message, the Oyo State governor, Engr Seyi Makinde faulted the continuous hiding away from the public, the version of the Electoral Act signed by President Tinubu.

Makinde emphasised that all stakeholders in the 2027 general elections ought to have obtained the signed copy of the Electoral Act “if truly Nigeria practices true Federalism”, challenging the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) alongside others, to make the said copy public.