Bola Tinubu, the leader of Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress, has officially announced his intention to run for president in next year’s election in Africa’s largest oil producer.
After a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja, Tinubu, who was governor of Lagos state from 1999 to 2007, announced his intention to reporters.
“I’ve informed the president,” said Tinubu, a Muslim from southwest Nigeria, who is 69 years old.
Tinubu is running for the APC nomination, which he helped form in 2013 as an alternative to the then-ruling People’s Democratic Party.
Next month, the APC is slated to conduct its convention, during which it will elect its national leadership. Following that, the party will have a selection process for Buhari’s successor, who would take office in February 2023 after two terms in office.
Tinubu’s chances of becoming the APC’s presidential nominee will be determined by whether his party chooses to continue an unofficial tradition of rotating the presidency between the primarily Muslim north and the predominantly Christian south.
While there is growing speculation that other high-profile politicians, including as Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, may run for the governing party’s candidacy, Tinubu is the first to openly proclaim his intentions.
