- Anger, despair and fatigue were high at Eagle Square, Abuja, the venue of the APC presidential campaign rally on Saturday, as supporters waited for their candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to arrive.
The crowd waited for over seven hours for the candidate, who eventually arrived at the venue at 7.25 pm for an event billed to start at 1 pm.
The APC candidate arrived at the venue from his Kebbi rally in the company of his running mate, Kashim Shettima and the party’s National Chairman, Abdullahi Adamu among other party heavyweights.
Some of the disgruntled supporters complained in a chat with our correspondent that they would not have left their base to spend such long hours waiting for him.
Although the campaign managers, the disc jockeys and the comperes did their best to engage and entertain the supporters in a carnival-like rally, they apparently became hysterical as each hour passes.
Despite repeated announcements at intervals that ‘the presidential candidate is on his way’ a good number of the supporters had started strolling out of the venue in disappointment.
From the early hours of the day, the venue was relatively peaceful as stern-looking, battle-ready security agents, paramilitary agencies, and private security outfits mounted barricades and guards at every major entrance to the campaign ground to forestall any security breach.
Hordes of support groups donning colourful uniforms branded T-shirts and caps customised with Tinubu’s ‘Renewed Hope’ marched and danced around waving banners carrying his campaign picture and other APC candidates vying for one position on the other for the 2023 election.
It was brisk business for the petty food and drinks vendors while the waiting game for the arrival of their presidential candidate lasted.
Notable dignitaries at the campaign venue were the Speaker of Nigeria’s House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila; PCC Secretary, James Faleke, wife of the presidential candidate, Oluremi Tinubu, wife of the APC vice presidential candidate, Nana Shettima; Chairperson of the Niger Delta Development Commission Board, Lauretta Onochie; wife of the Governor of Borno, Falmata Zulum; Minister of State for the FCT, Ramatu Tijanni; Secretary of the APC and other members of the APC PCC.
Also in attendance to add colour to the event include Nollywood artists like Saidi Balogun, Gentle giant, Abimbola Akintola and Zack Orji. Gbajabiamila himself arrived at the Eagle Square venue at exactly 5.50 pm, about four hours late.
