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| Bola Ahmed Tinubu |
Bola Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for president, skipped the town hall meeting of the candidates on Sunday to discuss strategies for the 2023 elections.
Three presidential candidates—Peter Obi of the Labour Party, Rabiu Kwankwaso of the NNPP, and Kola Abiola of the PRP—attended the townhall meeting, which was held by the Arise News Channel in Abuja in partnership with the Center for Democracy and Development (CDD). Atiku Abubakar of the PDP was represented by his running mate Ifeanyi Okowa.
No explanation was made public for Mr. Tinubu's refusal to use the live broadcast to inform Nigerians of his objectives. However, the former governor of Lagos was sighted at retired colonel Sani Bello's birthday celebration, which was held 6.4 kilometres (eight minutes' drive) away from the event..
Mr Tinubu’s absence from the town hall meeting is the latest in his series of purposeful boycotts of public gatherings aimed at engaging directly with candidates for public office.
The absence of the former Lagos governor has sparked widespread public outrage.
His prior performances had sparked concerns about his health and ability to manage the country in 2023 and beyond. Given the low ratings that Mr Tinubu’s public relations stunts have earned him, his aides have kept him out of public scrutiny.