Former Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has come to the defence of President Bola Tinubu, asserting that Tinubu is not the cause of the current hardships in Nigeria.

Ambode made the remarks during Chapter Eight of Akinjide Adeosun Foundation’s 2024 Leadership Colloquium and Award, where he discussed the theme, “Economic Asphyxiation – The Wisdom of Authentic Leaders.”

Ambode argued that Nigeria’s problems have deep historical roots, dating back to the slave trade era, and need a courageous leader like President Tinubu to address them comprehensively.

He discouraged engaging in a blame game and urged Nigerians to support the president.

The former governor emphasized the importance of executive reforms and coordination, calling for a united front in tackling the nation’s challenges.

Ambode suggested that Nigeria’s issues could be traced to the divide-and-extract strategy employed during the slave trade, contributing to the present state of the country.

He stressed the significance of leaders exhibiting confidence in a better future and called for a change in mindset to contribute to the nation’s progress.

Until we decide ourselves to say that we should unite for the common cause called Nigeria, the security issues will not go. We are all in a position to actually support Mr. President. Let us start to look at it from a different prism.

“We don’t have to wake up in the morning and be talking ill of Nigeria. We get what we profess about Nigeria.

“We must think out of the box. We have to feed ourselves. When we start to think by ourselves, and we resolve the issues concerning Nigeria, we will smile,” he added.