President Bola Tinubu on Sunday extended an olive branch to his sole challenger in the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary, Stanley Osifo, saying he bore no grudge against him.
PrimeTimes Nigeria reports that Tinubu spoke at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja after he was declared the APC presidential candidate for the 2027 election.
The President polled 10.9 million votes to defeat Osifo, a businessman from Edo State, who scored 16,503 votes nationwide.
Addressing party leaders and supporters after his victory, Tinubu said democracy should accommodate different views and political disagreements.
He said his administration remained open to dialogue with critics and political opponents.
“To those who despise our philosophy, we offer dialogue and engagement, not anger, confident that the sincerity of our purpose and the result of our work will speak for themselves,” Tinubu said.
Tinubu also addressed Osifo directly, saying he did not hold his decision to contest against him personally.
“I owe you no grudge, including Osifo, who spent his money,” he stated.
Osifo had paid N100m for the APC presidential nomination form and refused to step down after a planned consensus arrangement for the primary collapsed.
The President said disagreement within a democracy should not be seen as a threat.
According to him, democracy is sustained by diversity of ideas and a shared belief in the nation.
“You may be angry with our party, we don’t have to agree. Democracy is sustained not by uniformity but by diversity, by a shared belief in the nation, and the blending of ideas,” Tinubu said.