Former vice-president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, on Friday, met with former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, on the state of the nation and his aspiration to be president in 2015.
Atiku was accompanied to Obasanjo’s home by former Minister of Aviation and Director-General, Atiku Campaign Organisation, Dr Babalola Borisade; the Senator representing Kogi Central, Muhammmed Ohiare; Chief Oyewole Fasawe, the Director, legal unit of the campaign organisation, Professor Maxwell Gidado and Dr. Adeolu Akande.
The meeting, which lasted for about 30 minutes, was held behind closed door.
Saturday Tribune however, gathered that the meeting might not be unconnected with the elections and Atiku’s presidential ambition.
The former vice-president said he was in Abeokuta to see his former boss and pay respect to him, describing the relationship between them as cordial.
He said, “ I came to pay my respect to my former boss, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and secondly, we of course discussed the state of the nation generally and thirdly, our relationship is extremely cordial. That’s what I can say.”
Atiku stated that he would remain indebted to Obasanjo for giving him the opportunity to serve the country at the national level.
“When the late Chief MKO Abiola won the election, everybody was expecting that I was going to be his running mate, but they did not know what God had in store for me.
“President Obasanjo became the president of our great party then, he nominated me to be his vice-president and that gave me the opportunity to serve this country at the highest level. I am greatly indebted to him and the people of this state for that opportunity,” he said.
Asked to react on the exit of the former governor of Ogun State, Chief Olusegun Osoba and his loyalists from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Atiku said their exit was regrettable and unfortunate.
Atiku, who is the chairman of the South West reconciliation committee of APC, added that the party had decided to set up an elders sub-committee to look into issues that led into the crisis internally before the reconciliation committee takes over.
“Yes, I’m the chairman of the South West reconciliation committee, but we have also decided to set up an elders sub-committee to try and see if there will be what I call internal reconciliation before the bigger committee looks at the reconciliation process.
“It is regrettable, it is unfortunate, but I believe it is a situation that is still reconcilable. This is a situation that has been going on for quite some time and we’ve not given up,
