… says VP must not be disgraced out of office except …
“Every man will care about what bothers him most or bites him hardest. My concern presently is that come rain, come shine, the VP, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, must not be disgraced and humiliated out of office except he has flagrantly violated his oath of office, which I find difficult to believe”
By Ayo Esan
The Serving Overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has broken his silence over the ongoing controversy generated by alleged moves by members of a group, now termed the powerful cabal around President Muhammadu Buhari, to force Vice President Yemi Osinbajo out of the Villa.
The controversy began with the recent dissolution of the Osinbajo-led Economic Advisory Council, and its replacement with an Economic Advisory Council, under the chairmanship of Prof. Doyin Salami.
Pastor Bakare, who was Buhari’s running mate in the 2011 presidential election, under the defunct Congress for Progressive Change, revealed his views in a response, obtained exclusively by THE POINT.
The popular pastor, who has also been in the news as a top choice of the Presidency as replacement for Osinbajo, said, “Every man will care about what bothers him most or bites him hardest. My concern presently is that come rain, come shine, the VP, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, must not be disgraced and humiliated out of office except he has flagrantly violated his oath of office, which I find difficult to believe.
“I fear for those who rejoice at the ‘fall’ of others. Those who sow such seed are unmindful of the consequential definite law of harvest. I truly grieve for my brother and pray for God’s goodness, mercy and grace to surround him at this moment.”
He prayed for an amicable resolution of what many have perceived as a battle of wits in the Presidency, whether or not Osinbajo remained as VP, saying, “May the present overwhelming challenges, trials, afflictions and/or guilt by association be resolved in such a manner that God’s name will be praised and glorified in him at the end, whether or not he remains as VP till the end of this term. Everytime I remember that God is just, I fear for my country and her people.”
Reacting to Pastor Bakare’s position on the matter, a public affairs analyst, Dr. Anthony Akinyemi, said, “Pastor Bakare’s position on this matter is very clear to the discerning. It shows that he is sound politically, and has also, along the years, learnt one or two things about the art of war, in the context of what is right.”
According to him, the current crisis might also pave the way for the realisation of a prophecy revealed by Pastor Bakare himself before the 2019 presidential elections.
Recall that Bakare had, while addressing his congregation, declared, “Take it to the mountain top, if you have never heard it before, I’m saying it to you this morning. In the scheme of things, as far as politics of Nigeria is concerned, President Muhammadu Buhari is Number 15, I am Number 16.
“That is why if he wants to run for President in 2019, I do not oppose. He is still Number 15. It is when he steps out that I step in.”
There have been unconfirmed reports that the plan within the Presidency is to replace Osinbajo with Bakare, and thereafter, field him (the latter) as Buhari’s successor to quench the agitation of the South West for their turn at Aso Rock Villa.
“Perhaps, the whole plan is tilting towards the fulfilment of the Pastor’s prophecy,” Akinyemi averred.
