By Okoi Obono-Obla
Strategic Lessons from Tinubu’s Opposition Battles-
The current opposition leaders in Nigeria should understudy President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s strategic thinking, which Senator Babafemi Ojudu recently described as “strategic dexterity.” Tinubu deployed this effectively in 2007 to fight against what was widely regarded as one of the most flawed general elections ever conducted in Nigeria—a fact candidly admitted by its beneficiary, the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.
In that election, the PDP swept the South West geopolitical zone, including Edo State, and defeated the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) governorship candidates in Ekiti, Oyo, Osun, and Edo—states considered Tinubu’s strongholds and support base. It was a major blow to his legendary political prowess. Yet, Tinubu returned to the drawing board and devised a strategy to use the judiciary to reclaim states where elections had been badly rigged.
The ACN (formed from the AD) retained Lagos and later regained Ekiti and Osun through court decisions, bringing Dr. Kayode Fayemi and Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola to power.
2011 Victory
The ACN also reclaimed Edo State, where its candidate, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, defeated Professor Oserheimen Osunbor of the PDP, who had initially been declared the winner. By 2011, the ACN had gained substantial control, winning Ogun and Oyo, thereby establishing majority influence across the region.
Even beyond Tinubu’s immediate sphere of influence, opposition leaders fought similar battles. In Cross River State, I personally spearheaded efforts alongside late Dr. Paul Ukpo and Chief Solomon Awa Iheka, serving as Counsel to challenge the declaration of Senator Liyel Imoke as winner of the April 2007 governorship election. The Court of Appeal in Calabar, presided over by Honourable Justice Kudirat Motonmori Olatokunbo Kekere-Ekun (as she then was), ordered a fresh election after nullifying the flawed result.
Conclusion:
This history demonstrates that effective opposition is not built on noise or rhetoric but on strategic planning, persistence, and the intelligent use of institutions such as the judiciary. Today’s opposition leaders must learn from Tinubu’s example: victories are not won by lamenting electoral flaws but by deploying strategy to reclaim mandates.
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