Bola Tinubu, 70, widely credited with reshaping Nigeria’s commercial hub Lagos, will lead the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) into next February’s presidential election but he faces a reinvigorated opposition, allegations of corruption, and health issues as he eyes one of Africa’s most daunting jobs.
Once forced into exile by military ruler Sani Abacha, Mr Tinubu knows the value of freedom and wears it as an insignia on his signature hat – a broken shackle that looks like a horizontal figure eight.
A trained accountant, it was the activities of the pro-democracy National Democratic Coalition (Nadeco) group, where he was a member, that brought him into Abacha’s crosshairs.
The opposition of groups like Nadeco and Abacha’s death in 1998 ushered in Nigeria’s democracy in 1999 and in many ways, Mr Tinubu, a former Mobil oil executive, feels entitled to Nigeria’s presidency.
He will be banking on his experience in politics and huge influence across the country to win the election, where he will face stiff competition from former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who is standing for the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and a burgeoning campaign by the Labour Party’s Peter Obi, who is hugely popular with urban voters.
Source: BBC News