Tinubu recounts withdrawing Senate bid to focus on Fashola’s 2007 governorship campaign

President Bola Tinubu has revealed that he once abandoned his ambition to contest for a Senate seat in order to concentrate on securing the election of former Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola during the 2007 general elections.

Speaking on the decision, Tinubu said he had already obtained and completed the nomination forms for the Senate before deciding that pursuing his own political ambition could weaken the campaign to retain Lagos State for his party.

According to the President, the political climate at the time was challenging, as the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo was determined to wrest control of Lagos from the opposition.

Tinubu explained that after reflecting on the situation, he concluded that he needed to focus entirely on ensuring Fashola’s victory rather than pursuing a Senate seat.

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“I had obtained and filled the INEC form to go to the Senate. Then I realised that I had a governorship candidate, Mr Babatunde Fashola, and Obasanjo was the President, determined to win Lagos State,” he recalled.

He said he subsequently invited former lawmaker Ganiyu Solomon to accompany him to Abuja, where he withdrew his Senate nomination form at the office of the Independent National Electoral Commission and encouraged Solomon to contest instead.

According to Tinubu, Solomon was initially surprised by the gesture but eventually completed the nomination process.

The President said the decision enabled him to devote his full attention to the governorship campaign, which ultimately resulted in Fashola’s election as governor, while Solomon also secured victory in his own election.

Tinubu said the experience underscored the importance of selflessness and strategic sacrifice in politics.

“We must make sacrifices,” the President said, stressing that personal ambition should sometimes give way to broader political objectives and the collective interest of a political movement.