Laolu Akande, former media aide to ex-Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, has revealed how a cabal in the Presidency wanted former President Muhammadu Buhari to impose former Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, as the All Progressives Congress, APC, presidential candidate in 2023.
Speaking during an interview on the Naija Unfiltered Podcast while recounting events before the 2022 APC presidential primary, Akande said the cabal had a different plan from what Buhari wanted.
He said that the cabal wanted Buhari to support Lawan, and because of the pressure, Buhari’s own commitment to support any aspirant was downgraded.
“The cabal had a different plan, they wanted the President to support Ahmad Lawan. The President’s own commitment to really go out for anybody was sort of downgraded because of what the cabal wanted him to do,” Akande said.
According to him, despite the cabal’s move, Buhari actually wanted to support his vice president, Yemi Osinbajo.
“I believe that Buhari wanted to support his vice president not just depending only on what the vice president told me,” he added.
He had earlier said Buhari personally offered to support Osinbajo’s ambition at least four times, telling him “If I don’t support you, who will I support?”
The former presidential aide added that Buhari even commended Osinbajo’s campaign at a Federal Executive Council meeting for running a dignified, issues-based campaign.
Arogidigba Global Journal recalls that Osinbajo contested the APC primary in 2022 but lost to Bola Tinubu, who later won the general election and became President on May 29, 2023.