Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, has recounted how President Bola Tinubu played a decisive role in securing the APC presidential ticket for Muhammadu Buhari ahead of the 2014 convention.
Speaking in a recent interview, Lawal said that on the day of the convention, the political alignments were split. According to him, the North West was backing Rabiu Kwankwaso and Atiku Abubakar, while the South East was supporting Rochas Okorocha, who he said was likely to win based on delegate numbers. The South West, he added, was waiting for Tinubu’s direction.
Lawal disclosed that efforts to convince then Governors Murtala Nyako and Aliyu Wamakko to support Buhari did not yield much result. He said the group then approached Tinubu at night, presented him with data on Buhari’s previous votes in the North, and urged him to align the South West with Buhari.
“_That night, Bola didn’t sleep. He went back to Governor Nyako and Governor Wamakko and persuaded both to support Buhari. That was when we got the North West votes back for Buhari,_” Lawal said.
He explained that at the convention, Buhari secured the North West and South West blocs and picked up votes from other zones, while other candidates split the remaining votes.
Lawal also addressed reported tensions between Buhari and Tinubu during the administration. He said whenever Buhari complained about Tinubu, particularly over issues of upbringing and education, he would remind the former president of Tinubu’s role in 2014.
“_I told him, ‘You knew all this when you asked for his support, and he gave it to us. So why bite the finger that fed us?’ Buhari agreed and changed,_” Lawal stated.
He added, “_I was one of the people who knew firsthand what Tinubu did to facilitate Buhari’s presidency, and I never let Buhari forget it._”
The former SGF said Buhari had access to files on Tinubu but chose to back him despite that. 
