A former Special Assistant to former Lagos State Governor and current President, Bola Tinubu, Professor Dapo Thomas, has claimed that Tinubu initially withdrew his support for Babatunde Fashola’s second-term bid over what he described as attempts by the governor to build an independent political structure separate from his mentor.
Thomas, now a Professor of History at Lagos State
University, made the revelation in excerpts from his autobiography, Lagos Boy
and Lagos Politics, scheduled for launch on July 9, 2026, and made available to
Vanguard.
According to the former aide, the relationship between
Tinubu and Fashola deteriorated shortly after Fashola assumed office in 2007,
with disagreements over loyalty, succession politics and the control of Lagos’
political structure.
Thomas alleged that after securing his first term, Fashola
gradually distanced himself from Tinubu and began consolidating his own
political camp.
“By 2010, when it was time to prepare for second term, BAT
showed BRF and his boys that the vowel ‘A’ connotes ‘Agbara’ (Power) in Yoruba
by withdrawing his support for BRF,” Thomas wrote.
He claimed the decision forced Fashola to seek
reconciliation through traditional rulers and influential political figures.
According to Thomas, “BRF began jumping from one palace to
the other lobbying the Obas to besiege BAT for clemency. In addition, the
friends of the Governor, the likes of Pius Akinyelure, Prince Eludoyin and
Egbon Salami, were also mobilised for entreaties.”
The university lecturer alleged that Tinubu became
uncomfortable with Fashola’s alleged efforts to raise a successor who would
maintain an independent power bloc in Lagos rather than strengthen Tinubu’s
political base ahead of his national ambitions.
He said there was an understanding within the political
family that the next governor after Fashola should emerge from Lagos East and
be a Christian, a move aimed at balancing regional and religious interests
after 16 years of Muslim governors.
Thomas further claimed that while Tinubu and his loyalists
were working towards that arrangement, Fashola was allegedly promoting a
different succession plan centred on his preferred candidate.
According to him, the disagreement widened the rift between
both camps and fuelled tension within the then Action Congress of Nigeria
(ACN).
However, Thomas said he decided to intervene by writing a
newspaper article titled “Tinubu-Fashola: Crossroads, Not Dead-End,” in which
he appealed to Tinubu to forgive Fashola and grant him a second term.
In the article, Thomas argued that replacing Fashola would
slow Lagos’ development, describing the governor as someone who had justified
Tinubu’s confidence in him.
He also urged Tinubu to see any disagreements with his
political protégé as one of the challenges often encountered by political
leaders and godfathers.
Thomas disclosed that before publishing the article, he
sought Tinubu’s approval to avoid creating the impression that he was publicly
opposing his political leader.
According to him, Tinubu carefully reviewed the article,
discussed its contents with him and eventually directed that it should be
published.
“The moment he told me to go ahead with it and even told me
to publish it in The News, I knew immediately that Fashola would get a second
term,” Thomas wrote.
He added that Tinubu subsequently endorsed Fashola’s
re-election, a decision he said he welcomed despite his earlier disagreements
with the governor.
“I was happy because I saw victory in playing a positive
role in the elevation of an adversary who was plotting my own downfall,” Thomas
stated.
Thomas also claimed that after Fashola secured his second
term, disagreements over succession resurfaced as the governor allegedly sought
to influence the choice of his successor, while Tinubu eventually settled for
former Accountant-General of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode, as the preferred
candidate for the 2015 governorship election.
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