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A former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bode George, has defended President Bola Tinubu's lacklustre performance in his first year in office.
According to George, the President spent the first 12 months of his administration studying and correcting the failures bequeathed him by his predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari.
The former military Governor of Ondo State, known for his anti-Tinubu rhetorics, therefore appealed to Nigerians to give the current administration one more year to make good on their electoral promises and transform the country's fortunes.
He said these while speaking in an interview on Arsie Television on Friday, June 7, 2024.
The PDP chieftain noted that even though Tinubu was among those who brought the Buhari government into power, taking over and now leading the nation is a different kettle of fish.
“He (Tinubu) had never served at that level (presidency). Well… you will say he was part of the party (APC) that formed the government (of Muhammadu Buhari), but it’s a hell of a different thing taking over and now leading the team.
“To be fair to my conscience, he has had that one-year holiday of trying to study the failures of the past administration. I have given him that one year of grace because now he has seen it and lived there,” he said.
George affirmed that Tinubu's lack of experience in the presidential seat warrants a grace period of one year, noting that even former President Olusegun Obasanjo needed time to get into gear during his first year in office.
“I expect his ministers to have come back in one year with those areas of lapses. Even when Baba (Olusegun Obasanjo) became president in 1999, he was still trying to figure out what happened there or vice versa in his first year. Let’s give him more time,” he added.
Though a longtime staunch critic of Tinubu, George has toned down the antagonistic remarks of his fellow Lagosian since the former governor assumed the presidency.